Genome-Wide Identification and Characterization of Actin-Depolymerizing Factor (ADF) Family Genes and Expression Analysis of Responses to Various Stresses in Zea Mays L.

Abstract

Actin-depolymerizing factor (ADF) is a small class of actin-binding proteins that regulates the dynamics of actin in cells. Moreover, it is well known that the plant ADF family plays key roles in growth, development and defense-related functions. Results: Thirteen maize (Zea mays L., ZmADFs) ADF genes were identified using Hidden Markov Model. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the 36 identified ADF genes in Physcomitrella patens, Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa japonica, and Zea mays were clustered into five groups. Four pairs of segmental genes were found in the maize ADF gene family. The tissue-specific expression of ZmADFs and OsADFs was analyzed using microarray data obtained from the Maize and Rice eFP Browsers. Five ZmADFs (ZmADF1/2/7/12/13) from group V exhibited specifically high expression in tassel, pollen, and anther. The expression patterns of 13 ZmADFs in seedlings under five abiotic stresses were analyzed using qRT-PCR, and we found that the ADFs mainly responded to heat, salt, drought, and ABA. Conclusions: In our study, we identified ADF genes in maize and analyzed the gene structure and phylogenetic relationships. The results of expression analysis demonstrated that the expression level of ADF genes was diverse in various tissues and different stimuli, including abiotic and phytohormone stresses, indicating their different roles in plant growth, development, and response to external stimulus. This report extends our knowledge to understand the function of ADF genes in maize.

Genome-Wide Identification and Low Temperature Responsive Pattern of Actin Depolymerizing Factor (ADF) Gene Family in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

“…Analyses of the phylogenetic relationships, gene structures, and encoded motifs indicated that closely related TaADF homologous in the A, B, or D sub-genomes have similar exon–intron structures and encode the same conserved motifs, which is consistent with the results of an earlier study ( Feng et al, 2006 ). Our phylogenetic tree revealed that the ADF genes in the examined monocots are clustered in four main groups, with the ADF genes in the eudicot Arabidopsis distributed in subgroups I, II, and V. The phylogenetic relationships among the ADF genes from selected species were consistent with those described in published reports ( Khatun et al, 2016 ; Huang et al, 2020 ). Accordingly, the ADF genes in the analyzed flowering plants likely evolved from a common ancestor.…”

“…Nine TaADF genes ( TaADF4/5/6/7/8/9/23/24/25 ) were highly expressed in the anther, stigma, and ovary, but were expressed at low levels in the other examined tissues ( Figure 5A ). Similar results were reported for PhADF1/2 in petunia ( Mun et al, 2000 ), SlADF1/2/10/11 in tomato ( Khatun et al, 2016 ), and ZmADF1/2/7/12/13 in maize ( Huang et al, 2020 ). The actin genes in the Arabidopsis genome have been divided into the vegetative class (expressed predominantly in the leaves, roots, stems, petals, and sepals) and the reproductive class (highly expressed in pollen) ( Meagher et al, 1999 ).…”

“…Segmental duplications were revealed in this study as the main events responsible for the evolution of the TaADF gene family ( Figure 1B ). Similar events likely occurred in maize and tomato ( Khatun et al, 2016 ; Huang et al, 2020 ). Therefore, we speculate that the ADF gene families in higher plants expanded primarily because of segmental duplications.…”

“…The ADF gene family is relatively small in higher plants, with only 12, 12, 13, 11, and 14 members in rice, Arabidopsis , maize, tomato and poplar, respectively ( Feng et al, 2006 ; Roy-Zokan et al, 2015 ; Khatun et al, 2016 ; Huang et al, 2020 ). In this study, we identified 25, 18, 12, 11, 8, and 5 ADF genes in the wheat, T .…”

“…The development and application of genome sequencing technology has led to the identification of ADF genes in the genomes of several plant species, including rice, maize, tomato, and Arabidopsis ( Feng et al, 2006 ; Khatun et al, 2016 ; Huang et al, 2020 ). The availability of a sequenced ‘Chinese Spring’ genome has helped to facilitate the genome-wide analysis of gene families in wheat ( Hu et al, 2018 ; International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC), 2014 ; Liu et al, 2019 ; Zhou et al, 2019 ).…”