Abstract
The MADS-box gene family encodes transcription factors with many biological functions that extensively regulate plant growth, development and reproduction. Erigeron breviscapus is a medicinal herb used widely in traditional Chinese medicine, and is believed to improve blood circulation and ameliorate platelet coagulation. In order to gain a detailed understanding of how transcription factor expression may regulate the growth of this potentially important medicinal plant, a genome-wide analysis of the MADS-box gene family of E. breviscapus is needed. In the present study, 44 MADS-box genes were identified in E. breviscapus and categorized into five subgroups (MIKC, Mα, Mβ, Mγ and Mδ) according to their phylogenetic relationships with the Arabidopsis MADS-box genes. Additionally, the functional domain, subcellular location and motif compositions of the E. breviscapus MADS-box gene products were characterized. The expression levels for each of the E. breviscapus MADS-box (EbMADS) genes were analyzed in flower, leaf, stem and root organs, and showed that the majority of EbMADS genes were expressed in flowers. Meanwhile, some MADS genes were found to express high levels in leaf, stem and root, indicating that the MADS-box genes are involved in various aspects of the physiological and developmental processes of the E. breviscapus. The results from gene expression analysis under different pollination treatments revealed that the MADS-box genes were highly expressed after non-pollinated treatment. To the best of our knowledge, this study describes the first genome-wide analysis of the E. breviscapus MADS-box gene family, and the results provide valuable information for understanding of the classification, cloning and putative functions of the MADS-box family.
Highlights
MADS-box gene family, one of the most extensively studied transcription factor families, are involved in developmental control and signal transduction in eukaryotes [1]
To identify the members of the E. breviscapus MADS-box gene family, 108 Arabidopsis genes were employed as a query to search against the E. breviscapus database by the BLAST programs
44 putative MADS-box genes were identified in E. breviscapus and serially named as EbMADS1 through EbMADS44 for convenience (Table 1)
Summary
MADS-box gene family, one of the most extensively studied transcription factor families, are involved in developmental control and signal transduction in eukaryotes [1]. The MADS-box transcription factors were initially identified as floral organ identity-determination genes [4], and play important roles in plant development [6, 7, 8, 9] especially reproduction [10]. SHP1, SHP2 (Shatterproof) and FUL regulate fruit formation while TT16 (Transparent Testa16) influence seed pigmentation and endothelium development [15] Based on characteristics such as gene structure, encoded protein secondary structure and phylogenetic relationship, the plant MADS-box gene family can be divided into two major lineages: type I and type II [16]. The plant type II genes, which possess the highly conserved MADS domain, have been extensively studied over the last decade. The study will broaden our insight into the functional evolution of the MADS-box genes in plants
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