Japanese cultivated gentians are perennial plants that flower in early summer to late autumn in Japan, depending on the cultivar. Several flowering-related genes, including
GtFT1 and
GtTFL1, are known to be involved in regulating flowering time, but many such genes
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Japanese cultivated gentians are perennial plants that flower in early summer to late autumn in Japan, depending on the cultivar. Several flowering-related genes, including
GtFT1 and
GtTFL1, are known to be involved in regulating flowering time, but many such genes remain unidentified. In this study, we obtained transcriptome profiling data using the
Gentiana triflora cultivar ‘Maciry’, which typically flowers in late July. We conducted deep RNA sequencing analysis using gentian plants grown under natural field conditions for three months before flowering. To investigate diurnal changes, the plants were sampled at 4 h intervals over 24 h. Using these transcriptome data, we determined the expression profiles of leaves based on homology searches against the Flowering-Interactive Database of
Arabidopsis. In particular, we focused on transcription factor genes, belonging to the
BBX and
MADS-box families, and analyzed their developmental and diurnal variation. The expression levels of representative
BBX genes were also analyzed under long- and short-day conditions using in-vitro-grown seedlings, and the expression patterns of some
BBX genes differed. Clustering analysis revealed that the transcription factor genes were coexpressed with
GtFT1. Overall, these expression profiles will facilitate further analysis of the molecular mechanisms underlying the control of flowering time in gentians.
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