Identification of autophagy-related genes ATG18 subfamily genes in potato ( L.) and the role of gene in heat stress.

Autophagy is a highly conserved process in eukaryotes that is used to recycle the cellular components from the cytoplasm. It plays a crucial function in responding to both biotic and abiotic stress, as well as in the growth and development of plants. Autophagy-related genes (ATG) and their functions have been identified in numerous crop species. However, their specific tasks in potatoes ( L.), are still not well understood. This work is the first to identify and characterize the potato subfamily gene at the whole-genome level, resulting in a total of 6 potential subfamily genes. We analyzed the phylogenetic relationships, chromosome distribution and gene replication, conserved motifs and gene structure, interspecific collinearity relationship, and cis-regulatory elements of the ATG18 subfamily members using bioinformatics approaches. Furthermore, the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis suggested that subfamily genes exhibit differential expression in various tissues and organs of potato plants. When exposed to heat stress, their expression pattern was observed in the root, stem, and leaf. Based on a higher expression profile, the gene was further analyzed under heat stress in potatoes. The subcellular localization analysis of StATG18a revealed its presence in both the cytoplasm and nucleus. In addition, altered the growth indicators, physiological characteristics, and photosynthesis of potato plants under heat stresses. In conclusion, this work offers a thorough assessment of subfamily genes and provides essential recommendations for additional functional investigation of autophagy-associated genes in potato plants. Moreover, these results also contribute to our understanding of the potential mechanism and functional validation of the gene's persistent tolerance to heat stress in potato plants.