The Cotton Lignin Biosynthetic Gene <i>Gh4CL30</i> Regulates Lignification and Phenolic Content and Contributes to Verticillium Wilt Resistance

Verticillium wilt is a vascular disease causing tremendous damage to cotton production worldwide. However, our knowledge of the mechanisms resistance or susceptibility this very limited. In study, we compared defense transcriptomes (Gossypium hirsutum) cultivars Shidalukang 1 (Verticillium dahliae resistant, HR) and Junmian (V. susceptible, HS) before after V. infection, identified hub genes network associated with responses functionally characterized one involved in biosynthesis lignin phenolics. We 6,831 differentially expressed (DEGs) between basal HR HS; 3,685 3,239 these DEGs were induced HS, respectively, at different time points infection. KEGG pathway analysis indicated that enriched for biosynthesis. all, 23 based on weighted gene coexpression their expression profiles Knockdown Gh4CL30, related pathway, by virus-induced silencing, led decreased content flavonoids, lignin, S monomer but an increased G monomer, G/S caffeic acid, ferulic enhanced dahliae. These results suggest Gh4CL30 key modulating outputs branches provide new insights into [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2021 The Author(s). This open access article distributed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .