Genome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistance
Abstract Although fatty acyl-CoA reductase (FAR) proteins are known to play essential roles in plant growth and development, their involvement in biotic and abiotic stress responses remains insufficiently characterized. In this study, we performed a comprehensive genome-wide analysis of 31 FAR genes...
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2025-07-01
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| Series: | BMC Plant Biology |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-025-06908-w |
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| author | Wenhan Cheng Siqi Gao Zhaojie He Nurimanguli Aini Zengqiang Zhao Xianpeng Xiong Ning Wang Rui Chen Keyun Feng |
| author_facet | Wenhan Cheng Siqi Gao Zhaojie He Nurimanguli Aini Zengqiang Zhao Xianpeng Xiong Ning Wang Rui Chen Keyun Feng |
| author_sort | Wenhan Cheng |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Although fatty acyl-CoA reductase (FAR) proteins are known to play essential roles in plant growth and development, their involvement in biotic and abiotic stress responses remains insufficiently characterized. In this study, we performed a comprehensive genome-wide analysis of 31 FAR genes across four cotton species (Gossypium arboreum, G. raimondii, G. hirsutum, and G. barbadense). Phylogenetic and synteny analyses classified these FAR genes into three distinct clades, with whole-genome duplication events contributing significantly to their expansion. Promoter cis-element analysis and transcriptome profiling revealed that while most FAR genes were downregulated under abiotic stress, many were notably upregulated in response to hormone treatments and Verticillium dahliae infection. Among them, GhFAR3 showed strong induction upon pathogen challenge. Functional validation using virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) demonstrated that silencing GhFAR3 compromised resistance to V. dahliae, correlating with a marked reduction in suberin deposition in root tissues. These findings uncover a previously unrecognized role of FAR-mediated lipid metabolism in plant defense and establish GhFAR3 as a key positive regulator of cotton resistance to V. dahliae through suberin biosynthesis in roots. This study provides novel insights into the integration of lipid biosynthesis and pathogen resistance pathways in cotton. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2ca5b8e3471d4856952e017483958e44 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1471-2229 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
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| series | BMC Plant Biology |
| spelling | doaj-art-2ca5b8e3471d4856952e017483958e442025-08-20T03:42:27ZengBMCBMC Plant Biology1471-22292025-07-0125111610.1186/s12870-025-06908-wGenome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistanceWenhan Cheng0Siqi Gao1Zhaojie He2Nurimanguli Aini3Zengqiang Zhao4Xianpeng Xiong5Ning Wang6Rui Chen7Keyun Feng8College of Food and Biology, Jingchu University of TechnologyShenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesThe Key Oasis Eco-agriculture Laboratory of Xinjiang Production and Construction Group, College of Agriculture, Shihezi UniversityCollege of Modern Agriculture, Kashgar UniversityInstitute of Cotton Research, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural and Reclamation SciencesShenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesInstitute of Crop Sciences, Gansu Academy of Agricultural SciencesCollege of Food and Biology, Jingchu University of TechnologyInstitute of Crop Sciences, Gansu Academy of Agricultural SciencesAbstract Although fatty acyl-CoA reductase (FAR) proteins are known to play essential roles in plant growth and development, their involvement in biotic and abiotic stress responses remains insufficiently characterized. In this study, we performed a comprehensive genome-wide analysis of 31 FAR genes across four cotton species (Gossypium arboreum, G. raimondii, G. hirsutum, and G. barbadense). Phylogenetic and synteny analyses classified these FAR genes into three distinct clades, with whole-genome duplication events contributing significantly to their expansion. Promoter cis-element analysis and transcriptome profiling revealed that while most FAR genes were downregulated under abiotic stress, many were notably upregulated in response to hormone treatments and Verticillium dahliae infection. Among them, GhFAR3 showed strong induction upon pathogen challenge. Functional validation using virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) demonstrated that silencing GhFAR3 compromised resistance to V. dahliae, correlating with a marked reduction in suberin deposition in root tissues. These findings uncover a previously unrecognized role of FAR-mediated lipid metabolism in plant defense and establish GhFAR3 as a key positive regulator of cotton resistance to V. dahliae through suberin biosynthesis in roots. This study provides novel insights into the integration of lipid biosynthesis and pathogen resistance pathways in cotton.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-025-06908-wCottonFatty acyl-CoA reductaseFAR3Verticillium dahliaeSuberin |
| spellingShingle | Wenhan Cheng Siqi Gao Zhaojie He Nurimanguli Aini Zengqiang Zhao Xianpeng Xiong Ning Wang Rui Chen Keyun Feng Genome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistance BMC Plant Biology Cotton Fatty acyl-CoA reductase FAR3 Verticillium dahliae Suberin |
| title | Genome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistance |
| title_full | Genome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistance |
| title_fullStr | Genome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistance |
| title_full_unstemmed | Genome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistance |
| title_short | Genome‑wide identification of the cotton FAR gene family reveals GhFAR3 as a positive regulator of Verticillium dahliae resistance |
| title_sort | genome wide identification of the cotton far gene family reveals ghfar3 as a positive regulator of verticillium dahliae resistance |
| topic | Cotton Fatty acyl-CoA reductase FAR3 Verticillium dahliae Suberin |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-025-06908-w |
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