Molecular Function of BURP Proteins in Soybean

The BURP gene family has been implicated in plant stress responses, including germination and reproductive failure. In plants, the BURP family genes are found in numerous tissues and have no tissue specific expression, but they do respond to stress. The members of the USP and RD22 subfamilies respond to both stress and drought. This may explain why the BURP gene family is so common in plants.

Plant species contain multiple proteins containing the BURP domain. These proteins are found in diverse plants, but the molecular functions of these proteins are still unclear. Currently, no comprehensive analysis of these proteins in soybean has been conducted. However, this study provides the first complete list of species with known BURP domains, including their evolutionary relationship to their respective habitats and environmental factors. The study will now go on to examine the molecular function of BURP proteins.

The sequence of BURP proteins was described as X5-CH-X10-CH-X23-26-W. However, several sequences did not resemble this consensus sequence. The Gm08.1 sequence lacked all four conserved residues and contained a C-terminus that lacked the last CH motif. The other Gm14.2 and Gm18.2 sequences had the last conserved residue W replaced by F.