Expression patterns of photoperiod and temperature regulated heading date genes in Oryza sativa

In plants, flowering is a major biological phenomenon, which is regulated by an array of interactions occurring between biotic and abiotic factors. In our study, we have compared the expression profiles of flowering genes involved in the flowering pathway, which are influenced by conditions like photoperiod and temperature from seedling to heading developmental stages in two Oryza sativa indica varieties, viz., Zhenshan 97 and Minghui 63 using a expression network approach. Using the network expression approach, we found 17 co-expressed genes having the same expression profile pattern as three key photoperiod flowering genes Hd1, Ehd1 and Hd3a. We also demonstrated that these three co-expressed genes have a similar simulation pattern as temperature flowering genes. Based on our observations, we hypothesize that photoperiod and temperature regulate flowering pathways independently. The present study provides a basis for understanding the network of co-expressed genes involved in flowering pathway and presents a way to demonstrate the behavior of specific gene sets in specific cultivars.