Transcriptome Sequencing and Biochemical Analysis of Perianths and Coronas Reveal Flower Color Formation in Narcissus pseudonarcissus .

Narcissus pseudonarcissus is an important bulbous plant with white or yellow perianths and light yellow to orange-red coronas, but little is known regarding the biochemical and molecular basis related to flower color polymorphisms. To investigate the mechanism of color formation, RNA-Seq of flower of two widely cultured cultivars ('Slim Whitman' and 'Pinza') with different flower color was performed. A total of 84,463 unigenes were generated from the perianths and coronas. By parallel metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses, we provide an overview of carotenoid biosynthesis, degradation, and accumulation in N. pseudonarcissus . The results showed that the content of carotenoids in the corona was higher than that in the perianth in both cultivars. Accordingly, phytoene synthase (PSY) transcripts have a higher abundance in the coronas than that in perianths. While the expression levels of carotenoid biosynthetic genes, like GGPPS , PSY , and LCY-e , were not significantly different between two cultivars. In contrast, the carotenoid degradation gene NpCCD4 was highly expressed in white-perianth cultivars, but was hardly detected in yellow-perianth cultivars. Silencing of NpCCD4 resulted in a significant increase in carotenoid accumulation, especially in all- trans -β-carotene. Therefore, we presume that NpCCD4 is a crucial factor that causes the low carotenoid content and color fading phenomenon of 'Slim Whitman' by mediating carotenoid turnover. Our findings provide mass RNA-seq data and new insights into carotenoid metabolism in N. pseudonarcissus .