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Comprehensive analysis of bHLH transcription factors reveals candidate regulators of flower development and heat
Cheng Wang1,2, Shenghui Tu3, Liping Zou1,2
1Hubei Key Laboratory of Resource Utilization and Quality Control of Characteristic Crops, College of Life Science and Technology, Hubei Engineering University, Xiaogan, 432000, China.
Background:
The basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors constitute one of the largest families in plants and play vital roles in growth, development, and environmental stress responses. However, their involvement in flower development and heat stress response in Rhododendron simsii remains unclear.
Results:
A total of 116 bHLH genes were identified in the R. simsii genome and classified into 17 groups based on phylogenetic relationships with Arabidopsis thaliana bHLHs. Gene duplication analysis revealed that 57 genes originated from whole-genome duplication events, and 49 from ancient segmental duplications. Promoter analysis identified abundant cis-regulatory elements associated with light, gibberellin, abscisic acid, and stress responses, suggesting regulatory roles in flower development and stress adaptation. Expression profiling showed that 23 and 13 genes were specifically expressed in vegetative organs and flowers, respectively. Analysis of five flower developmental stages grouped 49 genes into four distinct expression patterns. Under high-temperature treatment, 12 flower-expressed genes exhibited altered expression, with nine being significantly upregulated. Functional annotation indicated that two genes, RsbHLH53 and RsbHLH59, are orthologous to Arabidopsis MYC2 and JAM2, which are key regulators of heat stress response.
Conclusions:
This study provides the first comprehensive characterization of the bHLH gene family in R. simsii and identifies candidate genes potentially involved in flower development and thermotolerance. These findings lay a theoretical foundation for understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying heat tolerance and for future molecular breeding of heat-resistant R. simsii varieties.
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