Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt Stress

Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) is grown worldwide to obtain edible oil, livestock feed, and biodiesel. However, drought and salt stress are becoming serious challenges to global soybean cultivation as they retard the growth of soybean plants and cause significant yield losses. Voltage-d...

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Main Authors: Muhammad Muneeb Ullah, Muqadas Aleem, Muhammad Mudassar Iqbal, Awais Riaz, Ainong Shi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Plants
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/14/2101
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author Muhammad Muneeb Ullah
Muqadas Aleem
Muhammad Mudassar Iqbal
Awais Riaz
Ainong Shi
author_facet Muhammad Muneeb Ullah
Muqadas Aleem
Muhammad Mudassar Iqbal
Awais Riaz
Ainong Shi
author_sort Muhammad Muneeb Ullah
collection DOAJ
description Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) is grown worldwide to obtain edible oil, livestock feed, and biodiesel. However, drought and salt stress are becoming serious challenges to global soybean cultivation as they retard the growth of soybean plants and cause significant yield losses. Voltage-dependent anion-selective channel (VDAC) proteins are well-known for their role in drought and salt tolerance in crop plants. In this study, we identified 111 putative VDAC genes randomly distributed in genomes of 14 plant species, including cultivated soybean (<i>Glycine max</i>) and wild soybean (<i>Glycine soja</i>). The comparative phylogenetic studies classified these genes into six different clades and found the highest structural similarities among VDAC genes of <i>G. max</i> and <i>G. soja</i>. From the conserved domain database, porin-3 (PF01459) was found to be the conserved domain in all VDAC proteins. Furthermore, gene annotation studies revealed the role of <i>GmaVDAC</i> proteins in voltage-gated anion channel activity. These proteins were also found to interact with other proteins, especially mitochondrial receptors. A total of 103 miRNAs were predicted to target fifteen <i>GmaVDAC</i> genes. In <i>G. max</i>, these genes were found to be segmentally duplicated and randomly distributed on twelve chromosomes. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that the <i>GmaVDAC18.2</i> gene showed overexpression in root nodules, whereas the <i>GmaVDAC9.</i>1, <i>GmaVDAC18.1</i>, and <i>GmaVDAC18.2</i> genes showed overexpression under drought and salt stress conditions.
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spelling doaj-art-4283fade892e490085e3887d058172532025-08-20T03:32:33ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472025-07-011414210110.3390/plants14142101Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt StressMuhammad Muneeb Ullah0Muqadas Aleem1Muhammad Mudassar Iqbal2Awais Riaz3Ainong Shi4Department of Horticulture, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USADepartment of Plant breeding and Genetics, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad 38000, PakistanDepartment of Plant breeding and Genetics, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad 38000, PakistanDepartment of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USADepartment of Horticulture, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USASoybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) is grown worldwide to obtain edible oil, livestock feed, and biodiesel. However, drought and salt stress are becoming serious challenges to global soybean cultivation as they retard the growth of soybean plants and cause significant yield losses. Voltage-dependent anion-selective channel (VDAC) proteins are well-known for their role in drought and salt tolerance in crop plants. In this study, we identified 111 putative VDAC genes randomly distributed in genomes of 14 plant species, including cultivated soybean (<i>Glycine max</i>) and wild soybean (<i>Glycine soja</i>). The comparative phylogenetic studies classified these genes into six different clades and found the highest structural similarities among VDAC genes of <i>G. max</i> and <i>G. soja</i>. From the conserved domain database, porin-3 (PF01459) was found to be the conserved domain in all VDAC proteins. Furthermore, gene annotation studies revealed the role of <i>GmaVDAC</i> proteins in voltage-gated anion channel activity. These proteins were also found to interact with other proteins, especially mitochondrial receptors. A total of 103 miRNAs were predicted to target fifteen <i>GmaVDAC</i> genes. In <i>G. max</i>, these genes were found to be segmentally duplicated and randomly distributed on twelve chromosomes. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that the <i>GmaVDAC18.2</i> gene showed overexpression in root nodules, whereas the <i>GmaVDAC9.</i>1, <i>GmaVDAC18.1</i>, and <i>GmaVDAC18.2</i> genes showed overexpression under drought and salt stress conditions.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/14/2101soybeangenome-wideVDACdroughtsalt stress
spellingShingle Muhammad Muneeb Ullah
Muqadas Aleem
Muhammad Mudassar Iqbal
Awais Riaz
Ainong Shi
Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt Stress
Plants
soybean
genome-wide
VDAC
drought
salt stress
title Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt Stress
title_full Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt Stress
title_fullStr Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt Stress
title_full_unstemmed Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt Stress
title_short Genome-Wide Characterization of VDAC Gene Family in Soybean (<i>Glycine max</i> L.) and In Silico Expression Profiling in Response to Drought and Salt Stress
title_sort genome wide characterization of vdac gene family in soybean i glycine max i l and in silico expression profiling in response to drought and salt stress
topic soybean
genome-wide
VDAC
drought
salt stress
url https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/14/2101
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