Year-end Sale % OFF 
Abstract
Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.), a protein-rich legume, is a major food component of the daily diet for residents in semi-arid tropical regions of the word. Pigeonpea is also known for its high level of tolerance against biotic and abiotic stresses. In this regard, understanding the genes involved in stress tolerance has great importance. In the present study, identification, and characterization of WRKY, a large transcription factor gene family involved in numerous biological processes like seed germination, metabolism, plant growth, biotic and abiotic stress responses was performed in pigeonpea. A total of 94 WRKY genes identified in the pigeonpea genome were extensively characterized for gene-structures, localizations, phylogenetic distribution, conserved motif organizations, and functional annotation. Phylogenetic analysis revealed three major groups (I, II, and III) of pigeonpea WRKY genes. Subsequently, expression profiling of 94 CcWRKY genes across different tissues like root, nodule, stem, petiole, petal, sepal, shoot apical meristem (SAM), mature pod, and mature seed retrieved from the available RNAseq data identified tissue-specific WRKY genes with preferential expression in the vegetative and reproductive stages. Gene co-expression networks identified four WRKY genes at the center of maximum interaction which may play a key role in the entire WRKY regulations. Furthermore, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) expression analysis of WRKY genes in root and leaf tissue samples from plants under drought and salinity stress identified differentially expressed WRKY genes. The study will be helpful to understand the evolution, regulation, and distribution of the WRKY gene family, and additional exploration for the development of stress tolerance cultivars in pigeonpea and other legumes crops.
Highlights
Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.), a leguminous crop, belongs to tribe Phaseoleae of the family Fabaceae.Other members of the tribe Phaseoleae include common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), soybean (Glycine max), cowpea (Vigna ungiculata), and mung bean (Vigna radiata) [1,2]
94 WRKY proteins which consist of a conserved WRKY domain were named as CcWRKY1 to CcWRKY94, as per their positions on C. cajan chromosome numbers 1–11 and scaffolds (Table S1)
We report for the first time a genome level study of WRKY genes in pigeonpea and investigated the functional structure of WRKY gene family in pigeonpea legume crop
Summary
Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.), a leguminous crop, belongs to tribe Phaseoleae of the family Fabaceae.Other members of the tribe Phaseoleae include common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), soybean (Glycine max), cowpea (Vigna ungiculata), and mung bean (Vigna radiata) [1,2]. Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.), a leguminous crop, belongs to tribe Phaseoleae of the family Fabaceae. The term pigeonpea was originated in Barbados, where Cajanus seeds were used as pigeon-feed [3]. An essential legume crop for the Indian subcontinent, is predominantly cultivated in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. More than 85% of world pigeonpea production and usage takes place in India. Pigeonpea constitutes a principle component of Indian food and provides a rich source of proteins, vitamins, and minerals [5,6]. A drought-tolerant legume crop, is grown in locations with less than 300 mm yearly rainfall due to its extensive tap roots. Besides having a high level of stress tolerance, considerable yield losses occurred in pigeonpea due to the biotic and abiotic stress
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
