Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Analysis of Wall-Associated Kinase (WAK) Gene Family in Cannabis sativa L.

Abstract

Wall-associated kinases (WAKs) are receptors that bind pectin or small pectic fragments in the cell wall and play roles in cell elongation and pathogen response. In the Cannabis sativa (Cs) genome, 53 CsWAK/CsWAKL (WAK-like) protein family members were identified and characterized; their amino acid lengths and molecular weights varied from 582 to 983, and from 65.6 to 108.8 kDa, respectively. They were classified into four main groups by a phylogenetic tree. Out of the 53 identified CsWAK/CsWAKL genes, 23 CsWAK/CsWAKL genes were unevenly distributed among six chromosomes. Two pairs of genes on chromosomes 4 and 7 have undergone duplication. The number of introns and exons among CsWAK/CsWAKL genes ranged from 1 to 6 and from 2 to 7, respectively. The promoter regions of 23 CsWAKs/CsWAKLs possessed diverse cis-regulatory elements that are involved in light, development, environmental stress, and hormone responsiveness. The expression profiles indicated that our candidate genes (CsWAK1, CsWAK4, CsWAK7, CsWAKL1, and CsWAKL7) are expressed in leaf tissue. These genes exhibit different expression patterns than their homologs in other plant species. These initial findings are useful resources for further research work on the potential roles of CsWAK/CsWAKL in cellular signalling during development, environmental stress conditions, and hormone treatments.

Genome-wide identification and characterization of wall-associated kinases, molecular docking and polysaccharide elicitation of monoterpenoid indole alkaloids in micro-propagated Catharanthus roseus

“…The present study recorded that the intron-exon structure of CrWAK genes resembles those reported in cotton (Dou et al 2021) and Cannabis (Sipahi et al 2022). The presence of a variety of cis-acting elements in the promotor region of CrWAK genes suggested their involvement in hormone-mediated developmental processes and stress responses.…”

Bioinformatic and Expression Analyses of the Wall‐Associated Kinase Genes Under High‐Temperature Stress in Sorghum

“…In this study, a total of 98 SbWAK/SbWAKL proteins were identified in sorghum compared to 100 in maize (Zuo et al, 2015), 125 in rice (de Oliveira et al, 2014), 115 in Brachypodium (Wu et al, 2020), 91 in barley (Tripathi et al, 2021), 68 in rose (Liu et al, 2021), 53 in cannabis (Sipahi et al, 2022), 44 in apple (Zuo et al, 2019), 26 in Arabidopsis (Verica & He, 2002), 29 in tomato (Sun et al, 2020), 58, 68 and 99 in cotton (Gossypium arboreum, G. raimondii, and G. hirsutum, respectively) (Zhang et al, 2021), and 29 in potato (Yu et al, 2022).…”

Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Potential Pathogen Resistance in Cannabis sativa

“…The Juglans regia WAK9, the homolog of CsWAK1, has been demonstrated to be involved in pathogen response [46]. A recent analysis of the WAK gene family in Cannabis sativa investigated some CsWAKs/CsWAKLs (CsWAK1, CsWAK4, CsWAK7, CsWAKL1, and CsWAKL7) in leaf tissues, showing how their expression differs from their homologs in other plants [47]. Furthermore, the hemp WAK1 gene is highly expressed under drought stress conditions, and its expression can be induced by phytohormones like salicylic acid, methyl jasmonate, and ethylene [48].…”