Genome-wide identification and expression analysis of in peanut ( L.).

Auxin response factors (ARFs) are transcription factors that regulate the expression of auxin response genes, and have important functions in plant growth and development. In this study, available genome data for peanut ( L.) were used to identify genes. In total, 61 and 23 were divided into six groups (I-VI). Molecular structural analysis revealed that the protein members of AhARF contain at least two domains, the B3 domain and the Auxin-resp domain, and that some have a C-terminal dimerisation domain. Screening of the transcriptome data of 22 tissues of cv. Tifrunner in a public database showed high expression levels of and . was expressed more highly in the stem and branch than in the root and leaf of the wild species () and cultivated species H103. After treatment with exogenous auxin (NAA), the expression of was inhibited, and this inhibition was greater in than in H103. The transcriptome map revealed that the expression of was higher in the larger pods of H8107 and ZP06 than in the medium pods of H103 and small pods of . Moreover, -5 was proven to be localised in the nucleus, consistent with the location of . These results suggest that may play an important role in pod development in peanut.