Genome wide identification and expression analysis of pepper C2H2 zinc finger transcription factors in response to anthracnose pathogen Colletotrichum truncatum

Abstract

Although, the C 2 H 2 zinc finger (ZF) family of plant transcription factors have been implicated in multiple biological processes, they are yet to be characterized in the economically important chilli pepper (Capsicum annuum). In this study, a total of 79 C 2 H 2 ZF genes were identified in the pepper genome. Phylogenetic analysis categorized the pepper C 2 H 2 ZF (CaZF) members into five subfamilies each with unique conserved domains and functions. Genomic organization revealed that CaZF genes have variable number of introns consistent with the characteristics defined by the evolutionary analysis. Segmental duplication-based purifying selection contributed to the expansion of CaZF genes in pepper. Additionally, 11 CaZF genes were identified as targets for 38 miRNAs indicating their role in post-transcriptional silencing-mediated genetic regulation. Gene expression analysis revealed that 18 CaZF genes were differentially expressed post-infection with the anthrocnose pathogen Colletotrichum truncatum, uncovering their potential function in pepper response to biotic stresses. Moreover, CaZFs were significantly induced post-treatment with methyl jasmonate and ethylene indicating their role in defense signaling. Notably, the MeJA responsive cis-elements were detected in the promoter regions of majority of CaZF genes, suggesting that CaZFs may be implicated in defense-responsive signal cross talking. Additionally, 18 CaZF genes were differentially expressed under drought and heat treatment, indicating their involvement in plant response to abiotic stresses. Overall, a comprehensive analysis of CaZF gene family in pepper provided significant insights into the understanding of C 2 H 2 ZFmediated stress regulation network, which would benefit the genetic improvement of pepper and other allied plants. KeywordsCapsicum annuum • C 2 H 2 zinc finger proteins • Genome wide analysis • Pepper anthracnose • Colletotrichum truncatum

A diverse panel of 755 bread wheat accessions harbors untapped genetic diversity in landraces and reveals novel genetic regions conferring powdery mildew resistance

“…The latter have been described to facilitate hypersensitive cell death response in tobacco and tomato (Van Den Burg et al 2008) and shown to be involved in defense response to stripe rust in wheat (Yin et al 2018). On the other hand, Zinc fingers of the C2H2-type were linked to plant defense response (Kim et al 2004; Tian et al 2010; Yin et al 2020; Sharma et al 2021), where some cases have shown that the transcriptional repression activity of the zinc finger was the mechanism behind this association (Weigel et al 2005; Uehara et al 2005).…”

“…Another associated region was detected on chromosome 5AL contained candidate genes putatively encoding C2H2-type Zinc fingers, an MLO-related protein, a serine/threonine kinase and an NLR. Zinc fingers of the C2H2-type were linked to plant defense response (146)(147)(148)(149), where some cases have shown that the transcriptional repression activity of the zinc finger was the mechanism behind this association (150,151). Mlo is a well-known player in powdery mildew resistance in barley, with rice and wheat homologs shown to have a conserved function (152,153).…”

Genome-Wide Analysis of Q-Type C2H2 ZFP Genes in Response to Biotic and Abiotic Stresses in Sugar Beet

“…C2H2 ZFPs are one of the most extensively studied transcription factors that play crucial roles in many biological processes in eukaryotic organisms [6,21]. The Q−type ZFP, a plant-specific subfamily of C2H2−ZFPs, was found to be involved in plant development, as well as various stress responses [15,34,51]. So far, Q−type ZFPs have been extensively studied in many species, such as A. thaliana, S. lycopersicum, Solanum tuberosum, T. aestivum, O. sativa, and P. trichocarpa (Table 2).…”

Comparative Transcriptomics Analysis Reveals the Differences in Transcription between Resistant and Susceptible Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) Varieties in Response to Anthracnose

“…In a recent study, C 2 H 2 zinc finger transcription factor (TF) genes were identified, and their expression levels in diseased pepper were analyzed to further clarify how the pepper response to anthracnose is regulated [ 15 ]. Using CRISPR/Cas9 technology to knock out CaERF28 can significantly increase the resistance of pepper to Colletotrichum truncatum [ 16 ].…”