Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Profiling of the <i>SRS</i> Gene Family in <i>Melilotus albus</i> Reveals Functions in Various Stress Conditions

oleh: Biao Ma, Lili Nian, Noor ul Ain, Xuelu Liu, Yingbo Yang, Xiaolin Zhu, Fasih Ullah Haider, Ying Lv, Pengpeng Bai, Xiaoning Zhang, Quanxi Li, Zixuan Mao, Zongyang Xue

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2022-11-01

Deskripsi

The plant-specific <i>SHI</i>-related sequence (<i>SRS</i>) family of transcription factors plays a vital role in growth regulation, plant development, phytohormone biosynthesis, and stress response. However, the genome-wide identification and role in the abiotic stress-related functions of the <i>SRS</i> gene family were not reported in white sweet clover (<i>Melilotus albus</i>). In this study, nine <i>M. albusĀ SRS</i> genes (named <i>MaSRS01</i>-<i>MaSRS09</i>) were identified via a genome-wide search method. All nine genes were located on six out of eight chromosomes in the genome of <i>M. albus</i> and duplication analysis indicated eight segmentally duplicated genes in the <i>MaSRS</i> family. These <i>MaSRS</i> genes were classified into six groups based on their phylogenetic relationships. The gene structure and motif composition results indicated that <i>MaSRS</i> members in the same group contained analogous intron/exon and motif organizations. Further, promoter region analysis of <i>MaSRS</i> genes uncovered various growth, development, and stress-responsive <i>cis</i>-acting elements. Protein interaction networks showed that each gene has both functions of interacting with other genes and members within the family. Moreover, real-time quantitative PCR was also performed to verify the expression patterns of nine <i>MaSRS</i> genes in the leaves of <i>M. albus</i>. The results showed that nine <i>MaSRSs</i> were up- and down-regulated at different time points after various stress treatments, such as salinity, low-temperature, salicylic acid (SA), and methyl jasmonate (MeJA). This is the first systematic study of the <i>M. albusĀ SRS</i> gene family, and it can serve as a strong foundation for further elucidation of the stress response and physiological improvement of the growth functions in <i>M. albus</i>.