Title : Genome-wide identification of LBD transcription factors and their role in abiotic stress tolerance in chickpea (Cicer arietinum)
Abstract:
Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the most important legumes crops worldwide, mostly cultivated in arid and semi-arid regions. Despite its nutritional and agronomic value, Chickpea productivity is limited by abiotic stresses due to low genetic diversity. In this study, whole-genome analysis of LBD transcription factor in Chickpea was conducted and 48 candidate CaLBDs were identified and localized across all 8 chromosomes. Comparative phylogeny with Arabidopsis thaliana and Oryza sativa classified LBD transcription factors into 5 groups (I-a, I-b, I-c, I-d, and II -a), primarily on basis of their sequence homology and conserved domains. Variation in intron/exon count among CaLBD genes uncovered structural diversity, while conserved motifs suggested their functional roles in biotic stress response. Synteny analysis revealed the evolutionary relationship of Chickpea with Arabidopsis thaliana and Medicago truncatula. Gene duplication analysis demonstrated tandem and segmental duplications expressing their roles in gene family expansion. Under the salt and stress conditions, CaLBD38 and CaLBD46 expressed the strongest upregulation. Interestingly, same pattern was observed in drought stress conditions where CaLBD38 and CaLBD46 were strongly upregulated. This study does not only provide resources for future studies on chickpea genetics but also serves as base for development of stress-resilient cultivars through molecular breeding programs.
Keywords: LBD gene family, Genome-wide analysis, Cicer arietinum L., Gene expression, Abiotic stresses
