The GRAS gene family in watermelons: identification, characterization and expression analysis of different tissues and root-knot nematode infestations
Gongbo Lv,
Xing Zheng,
Yitian Duan,
Yunyong Wen,
Bin Zeng,
Mingqiang Ai,
Bin He
Affiliations
Gongbo Lv
College of Life Sciences, Jiangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Bioprocess Engineering and Co-Innovation Center for In-Vitro Diagnostic Reagents and Devices of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
Xing Zheng
College of Life Sciences, Jiangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Bioprocess Engineering and Co-Innovation Center for In-Vitro Diagnostic Reagents and Devices of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
Yitian Duan
Renmin University of China, School of Information, Beijing, China
Yunyong Wen
College of Life Sciences, Jiangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Bioprocess Engineering and Co-Innovation Center for In-Vitro Diagnostic Reagents and Devices of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
Bin Zeng
College of Life Sciences, Jiangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Bioprocess Engineering and Co-Innovation Center for In-Vitro Diagnostic Reagents and Devices of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
Mingqiang Ai
College of Life Sciences, Jiangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Bioprocess Engineering and Co-Innovation Center for In-Vitro Diagnostic Reagents and Devices of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
Bin He
College of Life Sciences, Jiangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Bioprocess Engineering and Co-Innovation Center for In-Vitro Diagnostic Reagents and Devices of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
The family of GRAS plant-specific transcription factor plays diverse roles in numerous biological processes. Despite the identification and characterization of GRAS genes family in dozens of plant species, until now, GRAS members in watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) have not been investigated comprehensively. In this study, using bioinformatic analysis, we identified 37 GRAS genes in the watermelon genome (ClGRAS). These genes are classified into 10 distinct subfamilies based on previous research, and unevenly distributed on 11 chromosomes. Furthermore, a complete analysis was conducted to characterize conserved motifs and gene structures, which revealed the members within same subfamily that have analogous conserved gene structure and motif composition. Additionally, the expression pattern of ClGRAS genes was characterized in fruit flesh and rind tissues during watermelon fruit development and under red light (RL) as well as root knot nematode infestation. Finally, for verification of the availability of public transcriptome data, we also evaluated the expression levels of randomly selected four ClGRAS genes under RL and nematode infection by using qRT-PCR. The qRT-PCR results indicated that several ClGRAS genes were differentially expressed, implying their vital role in RL induction of watermelon resistance against root-knot nematodes. The results obtained in this study could be useful in improving the quality of watermelon.
