Genome-Wide Identification, Expression Patterns, and Functional Analysis of UDP Glycosyltransferase Family in Peach ( Prunus persica L. Batsch)

Peach ( L. Batsch) is a commercial grown fruit trees, important because of its essential nutrients and flavor promoting secondary metabolites. The glycosylation processes mediated by UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs) play an important role in regulating secondary metabolites availability. Identification and characterization of peach is therefore a research priority. A total of 168 peach genes that distributed unevenly across chromosomes were identified based on their conserved PSPG motifs. Phylogenetic analysis of these genes with plant UGTs clustered them into 16 groups (A-P). Comparison of the patterns of intron-extron and their positions within genes revealed one highly conserved intron insertion event in peach . Tissue specificity, temporal expression patterns in peach fruit during development and ripening, and in response to abiotic stress UV-B irradiation was investigated using RNA-seq strategy. The relationship between transcript levels and concentrations of glycosylated volatiles was examined to select candidates for functional analysis. Heterologous expressing these candidate genes in identified UGTs that were involved in the volatile glycosylation. Our results provide an important source for the identification of functional genes to potential manipulate secondary biosynthesis in peach.