Genome-wide analysis of the HAK potassium transporter gene family reveals asymmetrical evolution in tobacco ().

Being an essential mineral nutrient, potassium (K) plays numerous important roles in plant growth and development and determines the yield and quality of crop products. The cellular level of K is controlled to a large extent by the K transporter, which belongs to the KT/HAK/KUP (HAK) family. However, little is known about these genes in tobacco. In this study, we surveyed the tobacco genome and identified 41 putative genes (- and -). Investigation of the -elements in upstream regions of these genes suggests that members of this family respond to environmental cues and phytohormones. Expression data mining reveals that genes showed clear sub-genome dominance. In all, these results will provide molecular insights into K transporter research in tobacco.