Genome-wide characterization and VIGS-mediated silencing reveal that GHBSL7 enhances drought tolerance in cotton

The BSL gene family, comprised of phosphatase genes with kelch domains, plays vital roles in plant responses to brassinosteroid (BR) signaling and immune reactions to abiotic stress. However, there is no BSL-related reports in cotton, which has been regarded as an ideal crop for investigating genome ploidy and tolerance pioneer. In this study, a key drought response gene GHBSL7 was identified via genome-wide analysis of evolutionary trajectories and responses to abiotic stresses of cotton BSL genes. Functional identification using VIGS silence and RNA-seq revealed that GHBSL7 may participate cotton responses to drought through regulating the homeostasis of ROS and glycolytic pathway by regulating TcTPI and GAPDH genes in the central metabolic network. This study provides fundamental insights into the interplay of phytohormone signaling and molecular targets for future development of drought-tolerant cotton cultivars.