Genome-wide characterization and expression analysis of MADS-box transcription factor gene family in Perilla frutescens

Mengjing Liang; Zhongyang Du; Ze Yang; Tao Luo; Chunli Ji; Hongli Cui; Runzhi Li

doi:10.3389/fpls.2023.1299902

Genome-wide characterization and expression analysis of MADS-box transcription factor gene family in Perilla frutescens

Front Plant Sci. 2024 Jan 8:14:1299902. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1299902. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Mengjing Liang¹, Zhongyang Du¹, Ze Yang¹, Tao Luo¹, Chunli Ji¹, Hongli Cui², Runzhi Li¹

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Molecular Agriculture and Bioenergy, College of Agriculture, Shanxi Agricultural University, Jinzhong, Shanxi, China.
² Key Laboratory of Coastal Biology and Biological Resource Utilization, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai, Shandong, China.

Abstract

MADS-box transcription factors are widely involved in the regulation of plant growth, developmental processes, and response to abiotic stresses. Perilla frutescens, a versatile plant, is not only used for food and medicine but also serves as an economical oil crop. However, the MADS-box transcription factor family in P. frutescens is still largely unexplored. In this study, a total of 93 PfMADS genes were identified in P. frutescens genome. These genes, including 37 Type I and 56 Type II members, were randomly distributed across 20 chromosomes and 2 scaffold regions. Type II PfMADS proteins were found to contain a greater number of motifs, indicating more complex structures and diverse functions. Expression analysis revealed that most PfMADS genes (more than 76 members) exhibited widely expression model in almost all tissues. The further analysis indicated that there was strong correlation between some MIKC^C-type PfMADS genes and key genes involved in lipid synthesis and flavonoid metabolism, which implied that these PfMADS genes might play important regulatory role in the above two pathways. It was further verified that PfMADS47 can effectively mediate the regulation of lipid synthesis in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii transformants. Using cis-acting element analysis and qRT-PCR technology, the potential functions of six MIKC^C-type PfMADS genes in response to abiotic stresses, especially cold and drought, were studied. Altogether, this study is the first genome-wide analysis of PfMADS. This result further supports functional and evolutionary studies of PfMADS gene family and serves as a benchmark for related P. frutescens breeding studies.

Keywords: MADS transcription factors; Perilla frutescens; expression profiles; genome-wide characterization; lipid metabolism; stress responses.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2021YFD1901100), State Key Laboratory of Integrative Sustainable Dryland Agriculture (in preparation), Shanxi Agricultural University (202105D121008-3-6), Six New Project of Agriculture Department of Shanxi Province (unnumbered), National Natural Science Foundation of China (31902394), Key Research and Development Planning Project of Shanxi Province (201803D31063), Science and Technology Innovation Planning Project of Shanxi Agricultural University (2018YJ16), Outstanding Doctor to Work in Shanxi Province Research Project (SXYBKY2019036), Scientific and Technological Innovation Programs of Higher Education Institutions in Shanxi (2021L119).