MADS box genes in oil palm (Elaeis guineensis): patterns in the evolution of the SQUAMOSA, DEFICIENS, GLOBOSA, AGAMOUS, and SEPALLATA subfamilies

MADS box genes code for a large family of transcription factors which regulate development in higher plants, notably flower formation. We describe here a study of members of the MADS box gene family in oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.), a representative of the family Arecaceae and order Arecales, a key group of monocotyledons which has been unreported in previous phylogenetic reconstructions of the different recognized clades of MADS box genes. In this study, 13 oil palm MADS box genes were identified and characterized. They were found to belong to five different subfamilies, namely, the previously defined SQUAMOSA, AGAMOUS, AGAMOUS-like2, DEFICIENS, and GLOBOSA groups. Genes belonging to each of these groups play a critical role in the determination of flower structure as defined by the ABCDE model. The in planta expression profiles of the oil palm MADS box genes were studied by RT-PCR and phylogenetic sequence diversity within individual subfamilies was investigated by comparing their deduced protein sequences with those of other angiosperms. Most of the oil palm sequences studied were observed to group with distinct supported clades within their subfamily. Some unexpected groupings were observed between monocot sequences (including oil palm ones) of non-Poaceae origin, probably illustrating the importance of obtaining adequate taxon representation in monocot molecular phylogenies.