Genome-Wide Identification and Analysis of the Gene Family and Its Role in Carotenoid Biosynthesis in Wolfberry ( L.).

The B-box proteins (BBXs) are a family of zinc-finger transcription factors with one/two B-Box domain(s) and play important roles in plant growth and development as well as stress responses. Wolfberry ( L.) is an important traditional medicinal and food supplement in China, and its genome has recently been released. However, comprehensive studies of genes in species are lacking. In this study, 28 genes were identified and classified into five clades by a phylogeny analysis with BBX proteins from and the have similar protein motifs and gene structures. Promoter -regulatory element prediction revealed that might be highly responsive to light, phytohormone, and stress conditions. A synteny analysis indicated that 23, 20, 8, and 5 genes were orthologous to , , , and , respectively. The gene pairs encoding LbaBBX proteins evolved under strong purifying selection. In addition, the carotenoid content and expression patterns of selected genes were analyzed. and might play key roles in the regulation of zeaxanthin and antheraxanthin biosynthesis. Overall, this study improves our understanding of gene family characteristics and identifies genes involved in the regulation of carotenoid biosynthesis in wolfberry.