Validation of reference genes for RT-qPCR analysis in Burkholderia pyrrocinia JK-SH007

• The expression levels of eight candidate reference genes were studied with RT-qPCR under various culture conditions.
• The combination of genes pyrG and ftsZ was recommended as a set of usable interior control genes.
• Of nine genes tested, the gene pyrG was the most stable under various culture conditions.
• These reference genes may be candidates for RT-qPCR in other bacterial species.

Burkholderia pyrrocinia strain JK-SH007 isolated from poplar stems plays a highly significant role in the growth promotion and the biocontrol of poplar canker during colonization in poplar. In this research, the ideal reference gene was filtered and determined for the transcript normalization. Additionally, the expression of pyrG under all four conditions was relatively stable in B. pyrrocinia JK-SH007.