Genome-Wide Characterization of the PPR Gene Family in Cicer arietinum L. and Its Evolutionary Diversification

Abstract

Pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins make up a big group of proteins that are known to occur mainly in plants and take part in many processes of RNA metabolism in organelles, such as RNA editing, processing, translation, and stabilization. The activity of PPR proteins has been investigated but not their distribution and occurrence in the genome of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) What is why a genome-wide computational analysis was conducted in order to identify PPR gene family in C. arietinum. A total of 24 PPR genes were successfully identified, analyzed and described depending upon chromosomal localization, protein properties, exon-intron architecture and coding sequences. Conserved motifs were obtained using MEME Suite while evolutionary relationships were shown by phylogenetic analysis together with the information from gene structure analysis. In the result, important information about genomic and molecular organization, and evolutionary relationships and processes of PPR gene family in C. arietinum was received which can be used for functional characterization of PPR genes in chickpea.