Insights from the cold transcriptome of Physcomitrella patens: global specialization pattern of conserved transcriptional regulators and identification of orphan genes involved in cold acclimation

The whole-genome transcriptomic cold stress response of the moss Physcomitrella patens was analyzed and correlated with phenotypic and metabolic changes. Based on time-series microarray experiments and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, we characterized the transcriptomic changes related to early stress signaling and the initiation of cold acclimation. Transcription-associated protein (TAP)-encoding genes of P. patens and Arabidopsis thaliana were classified using generalized linear models. Physiological responses were monitored with pulse-amplitude-modulated fluorometry, high-performance liquid chromatography and targeted high-performance mass spectrometry. The transcript levels of 3220 genes were significantly affected by cold. Comparative classification revealed a global specialization of TAP families, a transcript accumulation of transcriptional regulators of the stimulus/stress response and a transcript decline of developmental regulators. Although transcripts of the intermediate to later response are from evolutionarily conserved genes, the early response is dominated by species-specific genes. These orphan genes may encode as yet unknown acclimation processes.