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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Abiotic Stress
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1506805

Genome-wide identification of the bHLH gene family in Scutellaria baicalensis and their relationship with baicalin biosynthesis under drought stress

Provisionally accepted
Yingxin Sun Yingxin Sun 1Beier Wang Beier Wang 1*Lichao Zhang Lichao Zhang 2*Xiaohan Zheng Xiaohan Zheng 1*Peng Xu Peng Xu 2*Meng Zhang Meng Zhang 1Meiguang Han Meiguang Han 1*Peng Di Peng Di 1Mei Han Mei Han 1*Lin Cheng Lin Cheng 1*Limin Yang Limin Yang 1*
  • 1 Jilin Agriculture University, Changchun, China
  • 2 Echnology Service Center on Ecological Planting of Chinese Herbal Medicine in Chengde, Chengde Hebei, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The bHLH gene family plays a critical role in regulating internal responses in plants. Although the pharmacological properties of Scutellaria baicalensis have been extensively studied, its bHLH gene family remain poorly investigated. In this study, 142 SbbHLH genes were identified using the complete genome data of S. baicalensis. Phylogenetic and conserved motif analyses revealed that the gene structures within each SbbHLH clade are relatively conserved. Gene duplication analysis revealed 29 duplication events in the SbbHLH gene family, most of which involved duplicated gene pairs subjected to purifying selection. Cis-element analysis revealed that these genes are regulated by various factors, including environmental conditions and hormonal stimuli. Transcriptomic data and qRT-PCR analysis demonstrated tissue-specific expression patterns for the 142 SbbHLH genes. Additionally, bHLH genes potentially involved in baicalin biosynthesis were identified under drought stress. The findings suggest that under drought stress, SbbHLH74, SbbHLH98, and SbbHLH142 are regulated by a network centered on SbbHLH53, which enhances baicalin biosynthesis. In conclusion, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of the bHLH gene family in S. baicalensis and identifies 4 potential SbbHLH genes involved in regulating baicalin biosynthesis under drought stress.

    Keywords: Scutellaria baicalensis, bHLH gene family, Expression pattern, Baicalin biosynthesis, Drought stress

    Received: 06 Oct 2024; Accepted: 26 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Sun, Wang, Zhang, Zheng, Xu, Zhang, Han, Di, Han, Cheng and Yang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Beier Wang, Jilin Agriculture University, Changchun, China
    Lichao Zhang, Echnology Service Center on Ecological Planting of Chinese Herbal Medicine in Chengde, Chengde Hebei, China
    Xiaohan Zheng, Jilin Agriculture University, Changchun, China
    Peng Xu, Echnology Service Center on Ecological Planting of Chinese Herbal Medicine in Chengde, Chengde Hebei, China
    Meiguang Han, Jilin Agriculture University, Changchun, China
    Mei Han, Jilin Agriculture University, Changchun, China
    Lin Cheng, Jilin Agriculture University, Changchun, China
    Limin Yang, Jilin Agriculture University, Changchun, China

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