title: Molecular, structural, and phylogenetic analyses of Taxus chinensis JAZs.
abstract: Taxus spp. are ancient gymnosperms that produce a unique secondary metabolite, namely, taxol, an anticancer drug. JAZ proteins are key regulators of the JA signaling pathway, which control taxol biosynthesis. However, the JAZ proteins of Taxus spp. are poorly studied. In this work, nine JAZ genes from Taxus chinensis were identified using our previous transcriptome data and named as TcJAZ1-TcJAZ9. Of these nine TcJAZ proteins, eight contain Jas and TIFY domains, and the Jas domain of TcJAZ6 is incomplete. Most TcJAZs and PsJAZs are not related to AtJAZs and OsJAZs. Phylogenetic analysis divided all JAZ proteins from Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa, Picea sitchensis, and T. chinensis into eight subgroups; gymnosperms JAZs were classified into subgroups V-VIII, and angiosperm JAZs were categorized into subgroups I-V. Three motifs of subgroups VI-VIII were identified in gymnosperm JAZs, indicating that gymnosperm JAZ proteins exhibit a different evolutionary process from those of angiosperms. The expression patterns of nine TcJAZs showed that TcJAZ2/3/8 was a key regulator, indicating their important roles in T. chinensis. Results revealed that gymnosperm JAZs differ from angiosperm JAZs in terms of molecular structure. Three novel conserved motifs were found in TcJAZs and PsJAZs. This study provides a basis for research on JA regulatory system in Taxus spp. and for elucidating the significance of JA signaling pathway to land plants.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Resource Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China.
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Resource Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Resource Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Nie
authors.affiliation: Institute of Resource Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiaofei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.affiliation: Institute of Resource Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China. Electronic address: fuchunhua@mail.hust.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Chunhua
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Resource Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, PR China.
authors.forename: Longjiang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yu
mesh_terms: D020816:Amino Acid Motifs; D003517:Cyclopentanes / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D054883:Oxylipins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D020946:Taxus / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D003517:Cyclopentanes; D054883:Oxylipins; D010940:Plant Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C011006:jasmonic acid
keywords: Angiosperm; Gymnosperm; JA signaling; JAZ; Taxus chinensis