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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 51(6)

Regulatory role of AGC genes in heat stress adaptation in maize (Zea mays)

Abdul Rehman A , Khairiah Mubarak Alwutayd B , Dikhnah Alshehri C , Ibtisam Mohammed Alsudays D , Farrukh Azeem https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2702-0330 A , Shahroz Rahman A , Muhammad Abid E and Asad Ali Shah https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1345-3151 A *
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Bioinformatics and Biotechnology, Government College University Faisalabad, Faisalabad, Pakistan.

B Department of Biology, College of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, P.O. Box 84428, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia.

C Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 71491, Saudi Arabia.

D Department of Biology, College of Science, Qassim University, Burydah, 52571, Saudi Arabia.

E Department of Plant Pathology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan.

* Correspondence to: asadshah.12@gmail.com

Handling Editor: Muhammad Nadeem

Functional Plant Biology 51, FP23282 https://doi.org/10.1071/FP23282
Submitted: 1 December 2023  Accepted: 19 April 2024  Published: 17 May 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing

Abstract

Heat stress represents a significant environmental challenge that restricts maize (Zea mays) growth and yield on a global scale. Within the plant kingdom, the AGC gene family, encoding a group of protein kinases, has emerged as crucial players in various stress responses. Nevertheless, a comprehensive understanding of AGC genes in Z. mays under heat-stress conditions remains elusive. A genome-wide analysis was done using bioinformatics techniques to identify 39 AGC genes in Z. mays, categorising them into three subfamilies based on their conserved domains. We investigated their phylogenetic relationships, gene structures (including intron-exon configurations), and expression patterns. These genes are likely involved in diverse signalling pathways, fulfilling distinct roles when exposed to heat stress conditions. Notably, most ZmAGC1.5, ZmAGC1.9, ZmNDR3, ZmNDR5 and ZmIRE3 exhibited significant changes in expression levels under heat stress, featuring a high G-box ratio. Furthermore, we pinpointed a subset of AGC genes displaying highly coordinated expression, implying their potential involvement in the heat stress response pathway. Our study offers valuable insights into the contribution of AGC genes to Z. mays’s heat stress response, thus facilitating the development of heat-tolerant Z. mays varieties.

Keywords: AGC gene family, AGC subfamilies, bioinformatics techniques, conserved domains, genome-wide analysis, heat stress, protein kinases, stress responses, Zea mays.

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