Genome-wide characterization and expression analysis of the Dof gene family related to abiotic stress in watermelon

Yong Zhou; Yuan Cheng; Chunpeng Wan; Jingwen Li; Youxin Yang; Jinyin Chen

doi:10.7717/peerj.8358

Genome-wide characterization and expression analysis of the Dof gene family related to abiotic stress in watermelon

PeerJ. 2020 Feb 17:8:e8358. doi: 10.7717/peerj.8358. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Yong Zhou^{1

2}, Yuan Cheng³, Chunpeng Wan^{1

4}, Jingwen Li^{1

4}, Youxin Yang^{1

4}, Jinyin Chen^{1

4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Crop Physiology, Ecology and Genetic Breeding, Ministry of Education, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China.
² Jiangxi Engineering Laboratory for the Development and Utilization of Agricultural Microbial Resources, College of Bioscience and Bioengineering, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, China.
³ Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, State Key Laboratory Breeding Base for Zhejiang Sustainable Pest and Disease Control, Institute of Vegetables, Hanghzou, Zhejiang, China.
⁴ Jiangxi Key Laboratory for Postharvest Technology and Nondestructive Testing of Fruits & Vegetables, Collaborative Innovation Center of Post-Harvest Key Technology and Quality Safety of Fruits and Vegetables, College of Agronomy, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China.
⁵ Pingxiang University, Pingxiang, Jiangxi, China.

Abstract

The plant DNA-binding with one finger (Dof) gene family is a class of plant-specific transcription factors that play vital roles in many biological processes and stress responses. In the present study, a total of 36 ClDof genes were identified in the watermelon genome, which were unevenly distributed on 10 chromosomes. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the ClDof proteins could be divided into nine groups, and the members in a particular group had similar motif arrangement and exon-intron structure. Synteny analysis indicated the presence of a large number of syntenic relationship events between watermelon and cucumber. In promoter analysis, five kinds of stress-related and nine kinds of hormone-related cis-elements were identified in the promoter regions of ClDof genes. We then analyzed the expression patterns of nine selected ClDof genes in eight specific tissues by qRT-PCR, and the results showed that they have tissue-specific expression patterns. We also evaluated the expression levels of 12 selected ClDof genes under salt stress and ABA treatments using qRT-PCR. As a result, they showed differential expression under these treatments, suggesting their important roles in stress response. Taken together, our results provide a basis for future research on the biological functions of Dof genes in watermelon.

Keywords: Abiotic stress; Dof; Expression profile; Phylogenetic analysis; Watermelon.

Grants and funding

This work was funded by the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangxi Province, China (20171BAB214030), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31560572), and the Foundation of Jiangxi Educational Committee (GJJ160393 and GJJ180172). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.