The GRAS gene family and its roles in seed development in litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn)

BACKGROUND: The GRAS gene family plays crucial roles in multiple biological processes of plant growth, including seed development, which is related to seedless traits of litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.). However, it hasn’t been fully identified and analyzed in litchi, an economic fruit tree cultivated in subtropical regions. RESULTS: In this study, 48 LcGRAS proteins were identified and termed according to their chromosomal location. LcGRAS proteins can be categorized into 14 subfamilies through phylogenetic analysis. Gene structure and conserved domain analysis revealed that different subfamilies harbored various motif patterns, suggesting their functional diversity. Synteny analysis revealed that the expansion of the GRAS family in litchi may be driven by their tandem and segmental duplication. After comprehensively analysing degradome data, we found that four LcGRAS genes belong to HAM subfamily were regulated via miR171-mediated degradation. The various expression patterns of LcGRAS genes in different tissues uncovered they were involved in different biological processes. Moreover, the different temporal expression profiles of LcGRAS genes between abortive and bold seed indicated some of them were involved in maintaining the normal development of the seed. CONCLUSION: Our study provides comprehensive analyses on GRAS family members in litchi, insight into a better understanding of the roles of GRAS in litchi development, and lays the foundation for further investigations on litchi seed development. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12870-021-03193-1.