Genome-wide analysis of the soybean DREB gene family: Identification, genomic organization and expression profiles in response to drought stress

DREB transcription factors regulate the expression of stress-responsive genes, and thus play an important role in plant stress response to abiotic stresses. To obtain a global expression profile of soybean DREB genes under drought stress, we first explored the soybean genome to identify DREB family genes, and then analysed a set of transcriptome data of drought stress to verify their involvement in stress response. We identified 73 DREB family genes from the soybean genome. These DREB genes were further divided into six subgroups basing on the phylogenetic analysis. Gene structure analysis showed that most DREB genes have a single exon without intron. Soybean DREB genes were unevenly distributed on 19 chromosomes. We further identified 186 putative target genes of soybean DREB proteins and found that these targeted genes were significantly enriched in metabolism pathways of fructose and mannose. The analysis of transcriptome data showed that DREB genes were differentially expressed during different periods of drought, indicating that the DREB family genes were responsive to drought stress.