Genome-wide identification and characterization of the SPL gene family and its expression in the various developmental stages and stress conditions in foxtail millet (Setaria italica)

BACKGROUND: Among the major transcription factors, SPL plays a crucial role in plant growth, development, and stress response. Foxtail millet (Setaria italica), as a C4 crop, is rich in nutrients and is beneficial to human health. However, research on the foxtail millet SPL (SQUAMOSA PROMOTER BINDING-LIKE) gene family is limited. RESULTS: In this study, a total of 18 SPL genes were identified for the comprehensive analysis of the whole genome of foxtail millet. These SiSPL genes were divided into seven subfamilies (I, II, III, V, VI, VII, and VIII) according to the classification of the Arabidopsis thaliana SPL gene family. Structural analysis of the SiSPL genes showed that the number of introns in subfamilies I and II were much larger than others, and the promoter regions of SiSPL genes were rich in different cis-acting elements. Among the 18 SiSPL genes, nine genes had putative binding sites with foxtail millet miR156. No tandem duplication events were found between the SiSPL genes, but four pairs of segmental duplications were detected. The SiSPL genes expression were detected in different tissues, which was generally highly expressed in seeds development process, especially SiSPL6 and SiSPL16, which deserve further study. The results of the expression levels of SiSPL genes under eight types of abiotic stresses showed that many stress responsive genes, especially SiSPL9, SiSPL10, and SiSPL16, were highly expressed under multiple stresses, which deserves further attention. CONCLUSIONS: In this research, 18 SPL genes were identified in foxtail millet, and their phylogenetic relationships, gene structural features, duplication events, gene expression and potential roles in foxtail millet development were studied. The findings provide a new perspective for the mining of the excellent SiSPL gene and the molecular breeding of foxtail millet. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-022-08633-2.