AUTHOR=Bano Nasreen , Fakhrah Shafquat , Mohanty Chandra Sekhar , Bag Sumit Kumar 

TITLE=Genome-Wide Identification and Evolutionary Analysis of Gossypium Tubby-Like Protein (TLP) Gene Family and Expression Analyses During Salt and Drought Stress

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2021.667929

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2021.667929

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Tubby-like proteins (TLPs) possess a highly conserved closed β barrel tubby domain at C-terminal and N-terminal F-box. The role of <italic>TLP</italic> gene family members has been widely discussed in numerous organisms; however, the detailed genome-wide study of this gene family in <italic>Gossypium</italic> species has not been reported till date. Here, we systematically identified 105 <italic>TLP</italic> gene family members in cotton (<italic>Gossypium arboreum, Gossypium raimondii, Gossypium hirsutum</italic>, and <italic>Gossypium barbadense</italic>) genomes and classified them into eight phylogenetic groups. Cotton <italic>TLP12</italic> gene family members clustered into two groups, 4 and 8. They experienced higher evolutionary pressure in comparison to others, indicating the faster evolution in both diploid as well as in tetraploid cotton. Cotton <italic>TLP</italic> gene family members expanded mainly due to segmental duplication, while only one pair of tandem duplication was found in cotton <italic>TLPs</italic> paralogous gene pairs. Subsequent qRT-PCR validation of seven putative key candidate genes of <italic>GhTLPs</italic> indicated that <italic>GhTLP11A</italic> and <italic>GhTLP12A.1</italic> genes were highly sensitive to salt and drought stress. The co-expression network, pathways, and <italic>cis</italic>-regulatory elements of <italic>GhTLP11A</italic> and <italic>GhTLP12A.1</italic> genes confirmed their functional importance in salt and drought stress responses. This study proposes the significance of <italic>GhTLP11A</italic> and <italic>GhTLP12A.1</italic> genes in exerting control over salt and drought stress responses in <italic>G. hirsutum</italic> and also provides a reference for future research, elaborating the biological roles of <italic>G. hirsutum TLPs</italic> in both stress responses.</p>