Transcriptome analysis reveals the mechanism by which spraying diethyl aminoethyl hexanoate after anthesis regulates wheat grain filling

BACKGROUND: Diethyl aminoethyl hexanoate (DA-6), a plant growth regulator, has many beneficial effects on agricultural production. DA-6 has been applied to many plant species, but the molecular mechanism by which spraying DA-6 after anthesis regulates wheat grain filling is still unknown. RESULTS: In this study, we used four DA-6 concentrations: C0 (0 g/L), C2 (2 g/L), C4 (4 g/L), and C6 (6 g/L). The results showed that C4 and C6 led to a significantly higher 1000-grain weight and seed protein content than C0 during two wheat growing seasons. We then subjected samples at 24 days after anthesis (at which point the grain weight increased rapidly) to transcriptome analysis. Flag leaf (L), seed (S), and stem (T) samples under C6 and C0 were used for RNA-seq. The seed samples under C6 compared with C0 (S6vsS0) presented the most differentially expressed genes (DEGs; 2164). Plant hormone signal transduction (p = 1.97 × 10(− 4)), protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER; p = 9.04 × 10(− 11)) and starch and sucrose metabolism (p = 1.90 × 10(− 10)) pathways were the most markedly enriched pathways in the flag leaves, stems, and seeds, respectively. DEGs involved in sucrose synthesis in the flag leaves, protein processing in ER in the stems, and starch synthesis and protein processing in ER in the seeds were significantly upregulated under C6 compared with C0. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, we propose a model for spraying DA-6 after anthesis to regulate metabolic pathways in wheat, which provides new insights into wheat in response to DA-6. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s12870-019-1925-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.