Heat shock proteins 70 (Hsp70) constitute a highly conserved protein family of cellular chaperones widely distributed in plants, where they play a fundamental role in response to biotic and abiotic stress. Until now, genome-wide analyses of the Hsp70 gene family have been conducted for some species. However, reports about Hsp70 genes in Nicotiana tabacum are scarce. In this study, we systematically conducted genome-wide identification and expression analysis of the Hsp70 gene family in tobacco, including gene structure, classification, evolutionary relationships, promoters, and transcript levels in response to abiotic stress treatments. In all, 61 Hsp70 members were identified and classified into six groups that were mapped onto 18 chromosomes, where most were distributed on both ends of the chromosome. The conserved structures and motifs of NtHsp70 proteins in the same subfamily were highly consistent. At least 15 pairs of NtHsp70 genes underwent gene duplication by segment and tandem duplications. Most NtHsp70 proteins contained N-terminal hexokinase conserved motifs. Phylogenetic analysis showed that most species expanded according to their own species-specific approach during the evolution of Hsp70s. Tissue-specific expression analysis indicated that all NtHsp70 genes were involved in at least one or more abiotic stress responses, highlighting the wide participation of NtHsp70 genes in environmental adaptation. This is the first genome-wide analysis of Hsp70 in N. tabacum. These results indicate that each NtHsp70 member fulfilled distinct functions in response to various abiotic stresses.
Keywords: Expression profile analysis; Genome-wide analysis; Heat shock protein 70; Nicotiana tabacum; Phylogenetic analysis; Synteny analysis.