AUTHOR=Zang Xinshan , Pei Wenfeng , Wu Man , Geng Yanhui , Wang Nuohan , Liu Guoyuan , Ma Jianjiang , Li Dan , Cui Yupeng , Li Xingli , Zhang Jinfa , Yu Jiwen 

TITLE=Genome-Scale Analysis of the WRI-Like Family in Gossypium and Functional Characterization of GhWRI1a Controlling Triacylglycerol Content

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2018.01516

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2018.01516

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Cotton (<italic>Gossypium</italic> spp.) is the most important natural fiber crop and the source of cottonseed oil, a basic by-product after ginning. <italic>AtWRI1</italic> and its orthologs in several other crop species have been previously used to increase triacylglycerols in seeds and vegetative tissues. In the present study, we identified 22, 17, 9, and 11 <italic>WRI-like</italic> genes in <italic>G. hirsutum</italic>, <italic>G. barbadense</italic>, <italic>G. arboreum</italic>, and <italic>G. raimondii</italic>, respectively. This gene family was divided into four subgroups, and a more <italic>WRI2-like</italic> subfamily was identified compared with dicotyledonous <italic>Arabidopsis</italic>. An analysis of chromosomal distributions revealed that the 22 <italic>GhWRI</italic> genes were distributed on eight At and eight Dt subgenome chromosomes. Moreover, <italic>GhWRI1a</italic> was highly expressed in ovules 20–35 days after anthesis and was selected for further functional analysis. Ectopic expression of <italic>GhWRI1a</italic> rescued the seed phenotype of a <italic>wri1-7</italic> mutant and increased the oil content of <italic>Arabidopsis</italic> seeds. Our comprehensive genome-wide analysis of the cotton <italic>WRI-like</italic> gene family lays a solid foundation for further studies.</p>