ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Metabolism and Chemodiversity
This article is part of the Research TopicMolecular Mechanisms and Multi-Omics Approaches in Plant Secondary Metabolism: Regulation, Stress Responses, and Biotechnological ApplicationsView all 9 articles
Genome-Wide Analysis of the Cellulose Synthase (CESA) Gene Family in Autopolyploid Sugarcane (Saccharum spontaneum)
Provisionally accepted
Xiaoshuang Wei1,2Zesheng Wei1,2Mingchong Yang1,2Qiang Chen1,2Jingzhen Wang1,2,3Liyan Zhao1,2,3Xia Zhang1,2
Lingqiang Wang1,2,3
Lihua Hu1,2,4*- 1Guangxi University State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro BioResources, Nanning, China
- 2Guangxi University Key Laboratory of Sugarcane Biology, Nanning, China
- 3Huazhong Agricultural University College of Plant Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- 4Guangxi University, Nanning, China
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Sugarcane is the most critical sugar and bioenergy crop. Cellulose synthase (CESA) genes are involved in cellulose synthesis, playing a significant role in plant growth and development, as well as in secondary metabolism. In this study, we systematically analyzed the CESA gene family in Sugarcane (Saccharum spontaneum), recognizing 30 members. 32 pairs of segmental duplication events contributed mainly to the expansion of this superfamily. In addition to plant hormones, stress-responsive and growth-related cis-acting elements were identified in SsCESA gene promoters, along with many MYB, NAC, and WRKY transcription factor binding sites. Transcriptomic data showed that most SsCESA transcripts were higher in stems and leaf transitional parts. qRT-PCR assays confirmed that SsCESA genes could respond to cold, heat, and salt stress. GFP subcellular localization assays exhibited that SsCESA4 and SsCESA9 proteins were localized at the Golgi apparatus. Finally, EMSA experiments confirmed that SsNST1 could bind to the promoters of SsCESA4, SsCESA7, and SsCESA9. This research elucidates the evolutionary patterns and functional characteristics of the SsCESA gene family in sugarcane, providing a basis for future investigations into its mechanism of action.
Keywords: sugarcane, Cell Wall, cellulose synthase, gene family, Phylogeneticanalysis, stem
Received: 19 Sep 2025; Accepted: 18 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wei, Wei, Yang, Chen, Wang, Zhao, Zhang, Wang and Hu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Lihua Hu, hulihua@gxu.edu.cn
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