Identification of OCT Family Genes in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and Function of SlOCT20 Under Cold Stress

作者：Rui Lv, Fulei Mo, Ying Liu, Huixin Zhang, Mingfang Feng, Peiwen Wang, Mozhen Cheng, Shusen Liu, Zhao Liu, Xiuling Chen, A. X. Wang · 发表于：Biology · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.3390/biology15020176 · 研究领域：Plant Stress Responses and Tolerance、Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity、Plant responses to water stress

Plant organic cation transporters (OCTs) are involved in a variety of beneficial biological processes, such as cadaverine transfer in plants and soil, and play an active role in the formation of plant stress resistance. In this study, 52 OCT family genes were identified in tomato, and comprehensive bioinformatics analyses of these numbers, such as promoter cis-acting elements, gene mapping and collinearity, protein characterization and phylogenetic analysis. By analyzing the expression of tomato OCT family genes under cold and salt stresses using transcriptome data and qRT-PCR experiments, a key gene regulating cold stress tolerance, SlOCT20, was identified. Subcellular localization experiments indicated that SlOCT20 was mainly localized in the cell membrane. When the SlOCT20 gene was silenced in tomato, the tolerance to cold stress was significantly reduced and oxidative stress was aggravated, indicating that this gene positively regulates the tolerance to cold stress in tomato.