Abstract:

The armadillo repeats (Armadillo repeats) are widely distributed in higher plants and are involved in a variety of cellular processes such as signal transduction, nuclear transport, and the response to various biotic/abiotic stresses. In this study, 54 potato ARM gene family members (StARMs) were identified at the genome-wide level of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.), and they were unevenly distributed on 12 chromosomes. Based on their protein structure and phylogenetic characteristics, 54 StARMs were divided into three subfamilies. Segmental duplication events play a major role in the expansion of potato StARM gene family. Collinearity analysis showed that there were 51, 17, 25, 6, and 10 orthologous gene pairs between StARMs and tomato, Arabidopsis, cabbage, rice, and maize, respectively, which evolved under purification selection. RNA-seq data analysis showed that four StARMs genes were specifically expressed in the stolon, two StARMs were specifically expressed in the root and carpel, and one StARM gene was specifically expressed in the tuber. Some StARM genes were involved in potato response to biotic/abiotic stresses. In addition, we performed RNA-seq on three different colored potato tuber tissues (skin and flesh) and analyzed the relative expression pattern of 54 StARMs genes in different colored potato tuber tissues and the StARMs in potato flesh in three different colored potatoes by qPCR. Four candidate genes that may be involved in anthocyanin biosynthesis in potato tubers were screened. This study provides a theoretical basis for further understanding the characteristics of the StARM gene family and further analyzing the function of the StARM gene in potato resistance to biotic/abiotic stresses and regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis in tubers.

Key words: potato, ARM gene family, biotic/abiotic stress, anthocyanin biosynthesis, the relative expression pattern