Genome-wide Exploration of Greenbug-Inducible NAC Transcription Factors Unveils Insights into Sorghum Defense Mechanisms

  • SorghumBase Team
  • 28 May 2024

Sorghum bicolor, a crucial cereal crop, faces significant threats from pests like the greenbug aphid, leading to severe damage and yield loss. While NAC transcription factors (TFs) play diverse roles in plant development and stress responses, their involvement in sorghum defense mechanisms remains unexplored. Researchers from Oklahoma State University and the USDA-ARS performed a comprehensive genomic analysis and identified 112 greenbug-inducible SbNAC genes in sorghum, distributed unevenly across chromosomes and clustered into 15 subfamilies. Expression profiling via RNA-seq revealed temporal and spatial specificity of these genes, suggesting their varied functions during sorghum growth and in response to stressors like greenbug infestation. Notably, nine SbNAC genes exhibited significant upregulation in response to greenbug attack, indicating their potential role in plant defense against aphids.

Structural analysis revealed diverse gene structures and domain architectures among SbNAC genes, highlighting potential functional variations within the gene family. Phylogenetic analysis traced evolutionary relationships between SbNAC TFs and homologs from other plant species, identifying subgroups associated with stress responses. These findings offer valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying sorghum defense against pests like greenbug, paving the way for further research on SbNAC gene functions and the regulatory networks governing plant stress responses.

SorghumBase examples: 

Figure 1: Phylogenetic relationships of those NAC genes in SorghumBase from and within sorghum including outgroups.
Figure 2: Multiple sequence alignment view of one of the sorghum NAC gene Sb01g003710 with its orthologs showing conservation of the NAC domain.

Reference:

Zhang H, Huang Y. Genome-wide identification and characterization of greenbug-inducible NAC transcription factors in sorghum. Mol Biol Rep. 2024 Jan 25;51(1):207. PMID: 38270755. doi: 10.1007/s11033-023-09158-x. Read More

Related Project Websites:

Yinghua Huang’s page at the Oklahoma State University: https://plantbio.okstate.edu/faculty/faculty/135-bios/462-yinghua-huang