Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Profiling Analysis of the Long-Chain Acyl-CoA Synthetases Reveal Their Potential Roles in Wheat Male Fertility.

Long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase (LACS), responsible for the conversion of free FAs into acyl-CoAs, is involved in multiple pathways of lipid metabolism. Although LACS genes in Arabidopsis have been well characterized, no detailed information concerning this family is available for wheat. In the present study, a systematic analysis was carried out for the wheat LACS family. As a result, 30 putative were identified. Expression analysis revealed that 22 were expressed in wheat anthers. Two orthologs of , and , were repressed at the vacuolated stage in the cold-treated BS366 (a temperature-sensitive genic male-sterile line). Thus, and may function like in wax biosynthesis in anthers, and the repression of both genes may be correlated with the male sterility of BS366. is an ortholog of , which was expressed exclusively in anthers. was repressed in the cold-treated BS366 at the tetrad, uninucleate, and vacuolated stages. The negative correlation between and -, and the MYB domain found in the promoter sequence suggested that may be negatively regulated by - to participate in wheat fertility. These findings will provide a valuable foundation for the understanding of the wheat LACS gene family in male fertility.