Abstract：How to confirm the functions of the genes and their regulation mechanisms by the massive information such as genome, transcriptome and the metebolomics is one of the core tasks in the field of life science. In present study, to make use the biological information data published in databases of Arabidopsis thaliana, the trichome related functional genes were screened based on the correlation between the difference of leaf trichome density variations and expression level differences of relevant genes among 31 Arabidopsis populations, which was established by linear correlation analysis model. All 1 747 genes were screened as their gene expression level was related to leaf trichome density from totally 33 554 genes. The number of negatively related genes were 195, and positively related genes were 1 552. The positively correlated genes were performed for function enrichment analysis. The results showed that the cluster terms mainly concentrated in the 4 aspects, including stress response, cellular component organization, biological regulation and metabolic processes. There were the most hierarchical clustering terms in the stress responses respect, including immune response and innate immune response, stress response, defense response, wound response, response to biological stimuli, fungal defense reaction, bacterial response, chemical stimulation of the response, organic material response, jasmonic acid response to stimuli, in response to carbohydrate stimulation and chitin response cluster terms. There were metabolism of glucosinolates, indole derivatives synthesis and metabolism, indole glucosinolates metabolism, protein phosphorylation and phosphate metabolism cluster terms about the metabolic process. There were cell wall modification and cell wall depolymerization cluster terms about the cellular component organization, and there were signal transduction, stress response regulation and defense response regulation cluster terms about biological regulation. In particular, there were genes directly related to the development of trichome and genes directly related to the secretion of the defense metabolites of trichome in the screened genes. Such as MYB23, a transcription factor which could induce the initiation of leaf trichome, DIS1 (distorted trichomes 1) which had an important influence on the development of trichome, and CYP81F2 (cytochrome P450 family 81 subfamily F polypeptide 2) and MYB51 which were both involved in the synthesis of indole glucosinolates. And the expression level of the 4 genes mentioned above all had a significant positive correlation with the density of the leaf trichome. Comparison of the function enrichment results of screened genes in the present research with the previous functions studies on leaf trichome proved practicability of the present method. Therefore, this method may provide a reference to screen target functional genes related to quantitative traits not only in A. thaliana but also in other species.
