Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress

Autores
Costa Tártara, Sabrina María; Arce, Debora Pamela; Tolosa, Gabriel; Pratta, Guillermo Raúl
Año de publicación
2026
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
The Hsp20 protein family, essential in heat stress responses across all organisms, is part of the heat shock protein (Hsp) superfamily, recognized for its conserved alpha-crystallin domain (ACD). Hsp20s are the smallest proteins in the superfamily and primarily assist in protein refolding during stress and developmental processes. We present an in silico characterization of the Hsp20 gene family in Chenopodium quinoa (2n = 4x = 36) using an integrative approach. Quinoa is well known for its global contributions to food production and tolerance to various abiotic stresses. We identified 69 CqHsp20 genes that exhibit a well-conserved evolutionary pattern, characterized by a balanced copy number distributed symmetrically across 19 homeologous pairs in both subgenomes (A and B), with localized expansions driven by tandem duplications on eight chromosomes. High sequence identity in contiguous gene pairs and Ka/Ks ratios consistently below 1 (0.14–0.84) mathematically demonstrate that strict purifying selection has maintained the structural and sequence integrity of these genes since the ancestral polyploidization event. The phylogenetic analysis grouped CqHsp20 into two main clusters, splitted into four sub-clusters based on peptides’ cellular localization, consistent with a characteristic gene structure and conserved motif analysis, which may reflect the evolutionary trajectory and functional specialization of the Hsp20 family in plants. The integration of transcriptomic data from published experiments enabled us to detect a cluster of putatively ubiquitously expressed CqHsp20, as well as other groups that showed differential responses across abiotic stress conditions. The pattern shows that more genes exhibit higher transcription abundance under drought and salinity than under heat, key adaptive traits underlying quinoa’s known ecological versatility. Some of these genes, which are undetectable or have low abundance under heat stress, encode organelle-targeting peptides, a phenomenon not reported in other model plant studies. Differential expression analysis revealed a highly transcribed sub-cluster where six out of seven of nuclear CqHsp20 genes were active in aerial tissue during initial heat stress, with a specific cohort of four genes (CQ025082, CQ031384, CQ041158, and CQ055373) maintaining significant upregulation (|log2⁡Fold⁢Change|≥1.0, padj<0.05) under prolonged and simultaneous shoot/root exposure. Varying expression within CqHsp20 homologous and paralogs supports the idea that gene duplication creates genomic diversity, facilitating adaptation to variable extreme environments. However, while theoretical and in silico analysis provide valuable insight into quinoa Hsp20 response, empirical data are essential to unequivocally understand how these gene expression variations affect quinoa response to abiotic stressors.
Fil: Costa Tártara, Sabrina María. Universidad Nacional de Luján. Departamento de Ciencias Básicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina
Fil: Arce, Debora Pamela. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Reg.san Nicolas. Secretaria de Ciencia y Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina
Fil: Tolosa, Gabriel. Universidad Nacional de Luján. Departamento de Ciencias Básicas; Argentina
Fil: Pratta, Guillermo Raúl. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario; Argentina
Materia
OMIC-DATA
ABIOTIC-STRESS
HSP20
GENE-FAMILY
DUPLICATIONS
CHENOPODIUM-QUINOA
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso abierto
Condiciones de uso
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ar/
Repositorio
CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Institución
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
OAI Identificador
oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/290342
Acceder
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repository_id_str 3498
network_name_str CONICET Digital (CONICET)
spelling Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat StressCosta Tártara, Sabrina MaríaArce, Debora PamelaTolosa, GabrielPratta, Guillermo RaúlOMIC-DATAABIOTIC-STRESSHSP20GENE-FAMILYDUPLICATIONSCHENOPODIUM-QUINOAhttps://purl.org/becyt/ford/4.1https://purl.org/becyt/ford/4The Hsp20 protein family, essential in heat stress responses across all organisms, is part of the heat shock protein (Hsp) superfamily, recognized for its conserved alpha-crystallin domain (ACD). Hsp20s are the smallest proteins in the superfamily and primarily assist in protein refolding during stress and developmental processes. We present an in silico characterization of the Hsp20 gene family in Chenopodium quinoa (2n = 4x = 36) using an integrative approach. Quinoa is well known for its global contributions to food production and tolerance to various abiotic stresses. We identified 69 CqHsp20 genes that exhibit a well-conserved evolutionary pattern, characterized by a balanced copy number distributed symmetrically across 19 homeologous pairs in both subgenomes (A and B), with localized expansions driven by tandem duplications on eight chromosomes. High sequence identity in contiguous gene pairs and Ka/Ks ratios consistently below 1 (0.14–0.84) mathematically demonstrate that strict purifying selection has maintained the structural and sequence integrity of these genes since the ancestral polyploidization event. The phylogenetic analysis grouped CqHsp20 into two main clusters, splitted into four sub-clusters based on peptides’ cellular localization, consistent with a characteristic gene structure and conserved motif analysis, which may reflect the evolutionary trajectory and functional specialization of the Hsp20 family in plants. The integration of transcriptomic data from published experiments enabled us to detect a cluster of putatively ubiquitously expressed CqHsp20, as well as other groups that showed differential responses across abiotic stress conditions. The pattern shows that more genes exhibit higher transcription abundance under drought and salinity than under heat, key adaptive traits underlying quinoa’s known ecological versatility. Some of these genes, which are undetectable or have low abundance under heat stress, encode organelle-targeting peptides, a phenomenon not reported in other model plant studies. Differential expression analysis revealed a highly transcribed sub-cluster where six out of seven of nuclear CqHsp20 genes were active in aerial tissue during initial heat stress, with a specific cohort of four genes (CQ025082, CQ031384, CQ041158, and CQ055373) maintaining significant upregulation (|log2⁡Fold⁢Change|≥1.0, padj<0.05) under prolonged and simultaneous shoot/root exposure. Varying expression within CqHsp20 homologous and paralogs supports the idea that gene duplication creates genomic diversity, facilitating adaptation to variable extreme environments. However, while theoretical and in silico analysis provide valuable insight into quinoa Hsp20 response, empirical data are essential to unequivocally understand how these gene expression variations affect quinoa response to abiotic stressors.Fil: Costa Tártara, Sabrina María. Universidad Nacional de Luján. Departamento de Ciencias Básicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Arce, Debora Pamela. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Reg.san Nicolas. Secretaria de Ciencia y Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Tolosa, Gabriel. Universidad Nacional de Luján. Departamento de Ciencias Básicas; ArgentinaFil: Pratta, Guillermo Raúl. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario; ArgentinaMDPI AG2026-04info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/11336/290342Costa Tártara, Sabrina María; Arce, Debora Pamela; Tolosa, Gabriel; Pratta, Guillermo Raúl; Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress; MDPI AG; Agronomy; 16; 12; 4-2026; 1-212073-43952310-287XCONICET DigitalCONICETenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/url/https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/16/12/1148info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.3390/agronomy16121148info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccesshttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ar/reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas2026-08-25T15:43:44Zoai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/290342instacron:CONICETInstitucionalhttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/oai/requestdasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:34982026-08-25 15:43:45.565CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicasfalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
title Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
spellingShingle Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
Costa Tártara, Sabrina María
OMIC-DATA
ABIOTIC-STRESS
HSP20
GENE-FAMILY
DUPLICATIONS
CHENOPODIUM-QUINOA
title_short Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
title_full Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
title_fullStr Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
title_full_unstemmed Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
title_sort Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Costa Tártara, Sabrina María
Arce, Debora Pamela
Tolosa, Gabriel
Pratta, Guillermo Raúl
author Costa Tártara, Sabrina María
author_facet Costa Tártara, Sabrina María
Arce, Debora Pamela
Tolosa, Gabriel
Pratta, Guillermo Raúl
author_role author
author2 Arce, Debora Pamela
Tolosa, Gabriel
Pratta, Guillermo Raúl
author2_role author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv OMIC-DATA
ABIOTIC-STRESS
HSP20
GENE-FAMILY
DUPLICATIONS
CHENOPODIUM-QUINOA
topic OMIC-DATA
ABIOTIC-STRESS
HSP20
GENE-FAMILY
DUPLICATIONS
CHENOPODIUM-QUINOA
purl_subject.fl_str_mv https://purl.org/becyt/ford/4.1
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/4
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv The Hsp20 protein family, essential in heat stress responses across all organisms, is part of the heat shock protein (Hsp) superfamily, recognized for its conserved alpha-crystallin domain (ACD). Hsp20s are the smallest proteins in the superfamily and primarily assist in protein refolding during stress and developmental processes. We present an in silico characterization of the Hsp20 gene family in Chenopodium quinoa (2n = 4x = 36) using an integrative approach. Quinoa is well known for its global contributions to food production and tolerance to various abiotic stresses. We identified 69 CqHsp20 genes that exhibit a well-conserved evolutionary pattern, characterized by a balanced copy number distributed symmetrically across 19 homeologous pairs in both subgenomes (A and B), with localized expansions driven by tandem duplications on eight chromosomes. High sequence identity in contiguous gene pairs and Ka/Ks ratios consistently below 1 (0.14–0.84) mathematically demonstrate that strict purifying selection has maintained the structural and sequence integrity of these genes since the ancestral polyploidization event. The phylogenetic analysis grouped CqHsp20 into two main clusters, splitted into four sub-clusters based on peptides’ cellular localization, consistent with a characteristic gene structure and conserved motif analysis, which may reflect the evolutionary trajectory and functional specialization of the Hsp20 family in plants. The integration of transcriptomic data from published experiments enabled us to detect a cluster of putatively ubiquitously expressed CqHsp20, as well as other groups that showed differential responses across abiotic stress conditions. The pattern shows that more genes exhibit higher transcription abundance under drought and salinity than under heat, key adaptive traits underlying quinoa’s known ecological versatility. Some of these genes, which are undetectable or have low abundance under heat stress, encode organelle-targeting peptides, a phenomenon not reported in other model plant studies. Differential expression analysis revealed a highly transcribed sub-cluster where six out of seven of nuclear CqHsp20 genes were active in aerial tissue during initial heat stress, with a specific cohort of four genes (CQ025082, CQ031384, CQ041158, and CQ055373) maintaining significant upregulation (|log2⁡Fold⁢Change|≥1.0, padj<0.05) under prolonged and simultaneous shoot/root exposure. Varying expression within CqHsp20 homologous and paralogs supports the idea that gene duplication creates genomic diversity, facilitating adaptation to variable extreme environments. However, while theoretical and in silico analysis provide valuable insight into quinoa Hsp20 response, empirical data are essential to unequivocally understand how these gene expression variations affect quinoa response to abiotic stressors.
Fil: Costa Tártara, Sabrina María. Universidad Nacional de Luján. Departamento de Ciencias Básicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina
Fil: Arce, Debora Pamela. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Reg.san Nicolas. Secretaria de Ciencia y Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina
Fil: Tolosa, Gabriel. Universidad Nacional de Luján. Departamento de Ciencias Básicas; Argentina
Fil: Pratta, Guillermo Raúl. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario; Argentina
description The Hsp20 protein family, essential in heat stress responses across all organisms, is part of the heat shock protein (Hsp) superfamily, recognized for its conserved alpha-crystallin domain (ACD). Hsp20s are the smallest proteins in the superfamily and primarily assist in protein refolding during stress and developmental processes. We present an in silico characterization of the Hsp20 gene family in Chenopodium quinoa (2n = 4x = 36) using an integrative approach. Quinoa is well known for its global contributions to food production and tolerance to various abiotic stresses. We identified 69 CqHsp20 genes that exhibit a well-conserved evolutionary pattern, characterized by a balanced copy number distributed symmetrically across 19 homeologous pairs in both subgenomes (A and B), with localized expansions driven by tandem duplications on eight chromosomes. High sequence identity in contiguous gene pairs and Ka/Ks ratios consistently below 1 (0.14–0.84) mathematically demonstrate that strict purifying selection has maintained the structural and sequence integrity of these genes since the ancestral polyploidization event. The phylogenetic analysis grouped CqHsp20 into two main clusters, splitted into four sub-clusters based on peptides’ cellular localization, consistent with a characteristic gene structure and conserved motif analysis, which may reflect the evolutionary trajectory and functional specialization of the Hsp20 family in plants. The integration of transcriptomic data from published experiments enabled us to detect a cluster of putatively ubiquitously expressed CqHsp20, as well as other groups that showed differential responses across abiotic stress conditions. The pattern shows that more genes exhibit higher transcription abundance under drought and salinity than under heat, key adaptive traits underlying quinoa’s known ecological versatility. Some of these genes, which are undetectable or have low abundance under heat stress, encode organelle-targeting peptides, a phenomenon not reported in other model plant studies. Differential expression analysis revealed a highly transcribed sub-cluster where six out of seven of nuclear CqHsp20 genes were active in aerial tissue during initial heat stress, with a specific cohort of four genes (CQ025082, CQ031384, CQ041158, and CQ055373) maintaining significant upregulation (|log2⁡Fold⁢Change|≥1.0, padj<0.05) under prolonged and simultaneous shoot/root exposure. Varying expression within CqHsp20 homologous and paralogs supports the idea that gene duplication creates genomic diversity, facilitating adaptation to variable extreme environments. However, while theoretical and in silico analysis provide valuable insight into quinoa Hsp20 response, empirical data are essential to unequivocally understand how these gene expression variations affect quinoa response to abiotic stressors.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2026-04
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/11336/290342
Costa Tártara, Sabrina María; Arce, Debora Pamela; Tolosa, Gabriel; Pratta, Guillermo Raúl; Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress; MDPI AG; Agronomy; 16; 12; 4-2026; 1-21
2073-4395
2310-287X
CONICET Digital
CONICET
url http://hdl.handle.net/11336/290342
identifier_str_mv Costa Tártara, Sabrina María; Arce, Debora Pamela; Tolosa, Gabriel; Pratta, Guillermo Raúl; Integrated In Silico Characterization of Quinoa Hsp20 Genes Reveals Preferential Responsiveness to Drought and Salinity over Heat Stress; MDPI AG; Agronomy; 16; 12; 4-2026; 1-21
2073-4395
2310-287X
CONICET Digital
CONICET
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/url/https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/16/12/1148
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.3390/agronomy16121148
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ar/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ar/
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv MDPI AG
publisher.none.fl_str_mv MDPI AG
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
reponame_str CONICET Digital (CONICET)
collection CONICET Digital (CONICET)
instname_str Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.name.fl_str_mv CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.mail.fl_str_mv dasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.ar
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