Identification of cadmium-induced genes in maize seedlings by suppression subtractive hybridization

A maize variety, Huatian-1, had an unusually low translocation rate of cadmium (Cd) (59.6 mg·kg^-1 in the roots and 0.093 mg·kg^-1 in the grain) compared to 24 other varieties while being grown in soils with 16.50 mg·kg^-1 Cd. This indicates that this particular species may have special mechanisms that affect the absorption and translocation pattern of Cd. In this paper, the technique of suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) was used to isolate and identify Cd-induced genes from Huatian-1 hydroponically ?exposed? to? 0.1 mM ?CdCl₂ ?for? 1 h,? 12 h, 24 h, and 48 h. We found a total of 15 differentially expressed genes in the four groups; 2, 3, 4, and 6 genes were from the groups of 1 h, 12 h, 24 h, and 48 h treatment, respectively. Phospholipase PLDb1 mRNA, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) phosphoribosyl transferase 2, and Sp17 were turned on in the maize in response to Cd stress, and it might provide new clues to explain the mechanism of maize tolerance to Cd.