Genome-wide identification and expression analysis of the WRKY gene family in common tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.).

The coding products of WRKY gene family plays important roles in plant growth and development as well as in various stress responses. They have been identified in various plants, but only few in common tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.). In this study, 164 putative WRKY proteins in the common tobacco genome were identified by using the conserved WRKY sequence (PF03106) from the Pfam database. Phylogenetic trees, functional domain analysis, chromosomal localization, subcellular localization and tissue expression patterns were analyzed with the bioinformatics softwares, including DNAMAN 5.0, Weblogo 3, MEGA 5.1, MG2C and MEME. First of all, phylogenetic trees divided all the candidate genes into three subfamilies: Ⅰ, Ⅱ and Ⅲ, respectively, and subfamily Ⅱ could be further divided into five subgroups: group Ⅱ-a, -b, -c, -d and -e. Secondly, the WRKY regions contained a highly conserved heptapeptide stretch WRKYGQK followed by a zinc-finger motif. Most of the NtWRKY genes contained 2-5 exons and a highly conserved gene structure. Thirdly, 154 out of 164 NtWRKY genes were distributed with different densities on 24 chromosomes, and each subfamily with different patterns and frequency. The largest number of NtWRKY genes was found on chromosome VI, and only one on chromosome X. Fourthly, the majority of NtWRKY members located in the nucleus, with 74 percent of subfamily Ⅲ in the extracellular matrix. Lastly, the members in the same subfamily had different spatial and temporal expression profiles, with 11 NtWRKY genes in roots, stems and leaves expressed at various levels. The expression of genes NtWRKY26, NtWRKY30 and NtWRKY32 can be induced by Phytophthora nicotianae. Our research thus provides valuable information for NtWRKY gene cloning and functional characterization in common tobacco.

Genome-wide identification and expression profiling of the C2H2-type zinc finger protein transcription factor family in tobacco.

C2H2 zinc finger protein transcription factor family members have important biological functions in eukaryotes. They not only bind DNA and RNA, but also interact with proteins. In this study, 118 members of the tobacco C2H2 zinc finger protein transcription factor family were identified from the N. tabacum genome database by using Pfam, SMART and Blastp. The analyses of phylogenetic tree, physical and chemical properties, chromosomal mapping, gene structures, protein three-dimensional structures and tissue expression patterns were performed. The results suggested that the peptide length of different subfamily members is significantly different. Phylogenetic and motif analysis revealed that the C2H2 zinc finger protein transcription factor family members can be divided into 5 subfamilies and each member has at least one C2H2 motif. Genes of the family members are distributed across the 22 chromosomes. C2H2 zinc finger protein transcription factor family members are expressed in different tissues although some have higher expression levels in leaves and roots. This study will be helpful for further analysis of the C2H2 zinc finger family proteins in other plants.

MapGene2Chrom, a tool to draw gene physical map based on Perl and SVG languages.

Genetic linkage map is helpful for analysis on heredity of some gene families and map-based gene cloning because of its simple and elegant manifestation. One software is in need to draw a gene physical map, which shows a manner similar to the genetic linkage map, based on the relative physical distance between genes. Although some tools like GBrowse and MapViewer etc. are available to draw gene physical map, there are obvious limitations for them: (1) the data need to be decorated in advance; (2) users can't modify results. Therefore, we developed a bio-assisted mapping software--MapGene2Chrom with PC and web versions, which is based on Perl and SVG languages. The software can be used to draw the corresponding physical map quickly in SVG format based on the input data. It will become a useful tool for drawing gene physical map with the advantages of simple input data format, easily modified output and very good portability.

[Bioinformatic prediction of conserved microRNAs and their target genes in eggplant (Solanum melongena L.)].

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a recently discovered class of small (-21nt), non-coding, endogenous, single-stranded RNAs in eukaryotes, regulate gene expression negatively at the post-transcriptional levels depending on the extent of complementation between miRNA and mRNA. To date, a large number of miRNAs have been reported in many species, but none for eggplant (Solanum melongena L.). In this paper, a computational homology search approach based on the conservation of miRNA sequences and the stem-loop hairpin secondary structures of miRNAs was adopted. The search was started with the known plant miRNAs compared to eggplant expressed sequence tags (EST) databases to find potential miRNAs. Following a range of filtering criteria, a total of 16 potential miRNAs belonging to 12 families were identified. Three pairs of sense and antisense strand eggplant miRNAs belonging to three different miRNA families were also found. Furthermore, miR390 and miR399 sense/antisense pairs are identified for the first time in plants. Using online software psRNATarget, we further predicted the target genes of these 16 miRNAs and got 71 potential targets genes on base of 15 eggplant miRNAs. Most of these target genes were predicted to encode proteins that play key role in eggplant growth, development, metabolism, and stress responses.