Cao Jiaqi, Wang Wei, Xu Xin, Li Si-Yu, Zheng Yusheng, Li Dong-Dong
Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, College of Tropical Crops, Hainan University, Hainan, 570228, China.
Biochem Genet. 2023 Dec;61(6):2382-2400. doi: 10.1007/s10528-023-10376-y. Epub 2023 Apr 15.
Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is the most important tropical oil-bearing crop species worldwide. MADS-box proteins, which play crucial roles in plant growth and development and are involved in various physiological and biochemical processes, compose one of the largest families of plant transcription factors. In this study, 42 MADS-box genes were screened from the mesocarp transcriptome database of oil palm fruit, and their phylogenetic relationships with Arabidopsis thaliana MADS-box genes were analyzed. Based on the results, MADS-box genes from oil palm mesocarp were classified into four groups: MIKC-type, MIKC*-type, Mα-type, and Mγ-type MADS-box genes. Members of the subfamilies were classified according to the presence of three specific protein motifs. To explore the differential expression of the MADS-box genes, the dynamic expression of all selected MADS-box genes in oil palm was measured by RNA-seq. The high expression of specific MADS-box genes in the mesocarp of oil palm during different developmental stages indicates that those genes may play important roles in the cell division of and metabolite accumulation in the fruit and could become important targets for fruit development and oil accumulation research in oil palm.
油棕（Elaeis guineensis）是全球最重要的热带油料作物品种。MADS-box蛋白在植物生长发育中发挥关键作用，并参与各种生理和生化过程，是植物转录因子中最大的家族之一。本研究从油棕果实的中果皮转录组数据库中筛选出42个MADS-box基因，并分析了它们与拟南芥MADS-box基因的系统发育关系。基于这些结果，油棕中果皮的MADS-box基因被分为四组：MIKC型、MIKC*型、Mα型和Mγ型MADS-box基因。亚家族成员根据三个特定蛋白质基序的存在情况进行分类。为了探究MADS-box基因的差异表达，通过RNA测序测定了油棕中所有选定MADS-box基因的动态表达。特定MADS-box基因在油棕不同发育阶段的中果皮中高表达，表明这些基因可能在果实的细胞分裂和代谢物积累中发挥重要作用，并可能成为油棕果实发育和油脂积累研究的重要靶点。
