Abstract
BACKGROUND: The BBR-BPC gene family is a relatively conservative group of transcription factors, playing a key role in plant morphogenesis, organ development, and responses to abiotic stress. Brassica napus L. (B. napus), commonly known as oilseed rape, is an allopolyploid plant formed by the hybridization and polyploidization of Brassica rapa L. (B. rapa) and Brassica oleracea L. (B. oleracea), and is one of the most important oil crops. However, little is known about the characteristics, conservation, and expression patterns of this gene family in B. napus, especially under abiotic stress. METHODS: To explore the characteristics and potential biological roles of the BBR-BPC gene family members in B. napus, we conducted identification based on bioinformatics and comparative genomics methods. We further analyzed the expression patterns through RNA-seq and qRT-PCR. RESULTS: We identified 25 BBR-BPC members, which were classified into three subfamilies based on phylogenetic analysis, and found them to be highly conserved in both monocots and dicots. The conserved motifs revealed that most members contained Motif 1, Motif 2, Motif 4, and Motif 8. After whole-genome duplication (WGD), collinearity analysis showed that BBR-BPC genes underwent significant purifying selection. The promoters of most BBR-BPC genes contained cis-acting elements related to light response, hormone induction, and stress response. RNA-seq and qRT-PCR further indicated that BnBBR-BPC7, BnBBR-BPC15, BnBBR-BPC20, and BnBBR-BPC25 might be key members of this family. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides a theoretical foundation for understanding the potential biological functions and roles of the BBR-BPC gene family, laying the groundwork for resistance breeding in B. napus.