R2R3-MYB Gene Family in Coptis teeta Wall.: Genome-Wide Identification, Phylogeny, Evolutionary Expansion, and Expression Analyses during Floral Development

The <i>R2R3-MYB</i> gene family represents a widely distributed class of plant transcription factors. This gene family plays an important role in many aspects of plant growth and development. However, the characterization of <i>R2R3-MYB</i> genes present in the genome of <i>Coptis teeta</i> has not been reported. Here, we describe the bioinformatic identification and characterization of 88 <i>R2R3-MYB</i> genes in this species, and the identification of members of the <i>R2R3-MYB</i> gene family in species within the order <i>Ranales</i> most closely related to <i>Coptis teeta</i>. The <i>CteR2R3-MYB</i> genes were shown to exhibit a higher degree of conservation compared to those of <i>A. thaliana</i>, as evidenced by phylogeny, conserved motifs, gene structure, and replication event analyses. Cis-acting element analysis confirmed the involvement of <i>CteR2R3-MYB</i> genes in a variety of developmental processes, including growth, cell differentiation, and reproduction mediated by hormone synthesis. In addition, through homology comparisons with the equivalent gene family in <i>A. thaliana</i>, protein regulatory network prediction and transcriptome data analysis of floral organs across three time periods of flower development, 17 candidate genes were shown to exhibit biased expression in two floral phenotypes of <i>C. teeta</i>. This suggests their potential involvement in floral development (anther development) in this species.