Analysis of the transcriptome of Potentilla sericea under cadmium stress conditions

Cadmium (Cd) stress significantly affects plant growth and development. Potentilla sericea is typically grown in gardens or as ground cover. In this study, the Cd response of P. sericea was analyzed based on physiological examinations and transcriptome analyses that uncovered the gene expression changes in P. sericea roots induced by a 7-day treatment with 90 μmol/L Cd2+. A total of 53,225 unigenes were identified, including 11,684 differentially expressed genes (DEGs; 8,083 upregulated and 3,601 downregulated). Additionally, 44 gene ontology terms and 127 Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathways were significantly enriched among these DEGs. Genes related to glutathione metabolism, plant hormone signal transduction, peroxisome processes, sulfur metabolism, and flavonoid biosynthesis pathways were confirmed as relevant to the Cd response of P. sericea. The molecular biology-related data described here may be useful for the future breeding of transgenic P. sericea plants with increased resistance to heavy metal stresses.