Genome-Wide Analysis of Specific PfR2R3-MYB Genes Related to Paulownia Witches' Broom

Paulownia witches' broom (PaWB), caused by phytoplasmas, is the most devastating infectious disease of Paulownia. transcription factors (TF) have been reported to be involved in the plant's response to infections caused by these pathogens, but a comprehensive study of the genes in Paulownia has not been reported. In this study, we identified 138 genes distributed on 20 chromosomes of . These genes were classified into 27 subfamilies based on their gene structures and phylogenetic relationships, which indicated that they have various evolutionary relationships and have undergone rich segmental replication events. We determined the expression patterns of the 138 genes of by analyzing the RNA sequencing data and found that was significantly up-regulated in in response to phytoplasma infections. was cloned and overexpressed in . The results show that its overexpression induced branching symptoms. Subsequently, the subcellular localization results showed that was located in the nucleus. Yeast two-hybrid and bimolecular fluorescence complementation experiments showed that interacted with . The analysis of the gene showed that it not only played an important role in plant branching, but also might participate in the biosynthesis of photosystem elements. Our results will provide a foundation for future studies of the TF family in Paulownia and other plants.