TY - JOUR AU - Li, Yuening AU - Wang, Xianglong AU - Guo, Qingxun AU - Zhang, Xinsheng AU - Zhou, Lianxia AU - Zhang, Yang AU - Zhang, Chunyu PY - 2022 M3 - Original Research TI - Conservation and Diversity of miR166 Family Members From Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) and Their Potential Functions in Abiotic Stress JO - Frontiers in Genetics UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2022.919856 VL - 13 SN - 1664-8021 N2 - MicroRNA166 (miR166) is highly conserved and has diverse functions across plant species. The highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) genome is thought to harbor 10 miRNA166 loci (Vco-miR166), but the extent of their evolutionary conservation or functional diversification remains unknown. In this study, we identified six additional Vco-miR166 loci based on conserved features of the miR166 family. Phylogenetic analyses showed that mature Vco-miR166s and their precursor cluster in several clades are evolutionary conserved with diverse species. The cis-regulatory elements in the Vco-miR166 promoters indicated functions related to different phytohormones and defense responses. We also identified putative targets of vco-miR166s, which targeted the same gene families, suggesting the functional conservation and diversification of Vco-miR166 family members. Furthermore, we examined the accumulation patterns of six mature Vco-miR166s in response to abiotic stresses by stem-loop reverse RT-qPCR, which revealed their upregulation under freezing, cold, and heat stress, while they were downregulated by drought compared to control growth conditions. However, Vco-miR166 members showed different expression patterns when exposed to salt stress. These results showed that conserved Vco-miR166 family members display functional diversification but also coordinately influence plant responses to abiotic stress. ER -