Genome-Wide Identification, Expression Analysis and Functional Study of Gene Family in .

The control of flowering time has an important impact on biomass and the environmental adaption of legumes. The (, and ) gene family was elucidated to participate in the molecular regulation of flowering in plants. We identified 36 genes in the . genome and they were classified into three distinct subfamilies, (7), (11) and (18). Synteny and phylogenetic analyses revealed that genes occurred before the differentiation of monocot and dicot, and orthologous genes might have diversified among plants. The diverse spatial-temporal expression profiles indicated that genes could be key regulators in flowering time, as well as in the development of seeds and nodules in . Notably, 22 genes with typical circadian rhythmic variations suggested their different responses to light. The response to various hormones of genes demonstrated that they participate in plant growth and development via varied hormones dependent pathways. Moreover, six genes were dramatically induced by salinity and dehydration treatments, illustrating their vital roles in the prevention of abiotic injury. Collectively, our study provides valuable information for the in-depth investigation of the molecular mechanism of flowering time in , and it also provides candidate genes for alfalfa molecular breeding with ideal flowering time.