| Summary: | Cuticular wax is a mixture of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFAs) and their derivatives, which determines vital roles for plant growth. In cabbage, the cuticular wax content of leaf blades is an important trait influencing morphological features of the head. Understanding the molecular basis of cuticular wax biosynthesis can help breeders develop high quality cabbage varieties. Here, we characterize a cabbage <i>non-wax glossy</i> (<i>nwgl</i>) plant, which exhibits glossy green phenotype. Cryo-scanning electron microscope analysis showed abnormal wax crystals on the leaf surfaces of <i>nwgl</i> plants. Cuticular wax composition analyzed by GC-MS displayed severely decreased in total wax loads, and individual wax components in <i>nwgl</i> leaves. We delimited the <i>NWGL</i> locus into a 99-kb interval between the at004 marker and the end of chromosome C08 through fine mapping. By high-throughput RNA sequencing, we identified 1247 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 148 differentially expressed lncRNAs in <i>nwgl</i> leaves relative to the wild-type. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis revealed that the DEGs and <i>cis</i>-regulated target genes for differentially expressed lncRNAs were significantly enriched in wax and lipid biosynthetic or metabolic processes. Our results provide the novel foundation to explore the complex molecular basis of cuticular wax biosynthesis.
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