Are TaNAC Transcription Factors Involved in Promoting Wheat Yield by -Regulation of Gene Family?

NAC transcription factors (TFs) are one of the largest TF families in plants, and TaNACs have been known to participate in the regulation of the transcription of many yield-regulating genes in bread wheat. The gene family members (GFMs) have already been shown to regulate yield-related traits, including grain mass and number, leaf senescence, and root growth. The genes encode cytokinin (CK) degrading enzymes (CKXs) and are specifically expressed in different parts of developing wheat plants. The aim of the study was to identify and characterize involved in the -regulation of GFMs. After analysis of the initial transcription factor data in 1.5 Kb -regulatory sequences of a total of 35 homologues of GFMs, we selected five of them, namely , , , , and , and identified five genes: , , , , and , which are potentially involved in the -regulation of selected genes, respectively. Protein feature analysis revealed that all of the selected TaNACs have a conserved NAC domain and showed a stable tertiary structure model. The expression profile of the selected was studied in 5 day-old seedling roots, 5-6 cm inflorescences, 0, 4, 7, and 14 days-after-pollination (DAP) spikes, and the accompanying flag leaves. The expression pattern showed that all of the selected were preferentially expressed in seedling roots, 7 and 14 DAP spikes, and flag leaves compared to 5-6 cm inflorescence and 0 and 4 DAP spikes and flag leaves in Kontesa and Ostka spring wheat cultivars (cvs.). In conclusion, the results of this study highlight the potential role of the selected in the regulation of grain productivity, leaf senescence, root growth, and response to various stresses.