HECT (homologous to the E6AP carboxyl terminus) ubiquitin ligase genes (E3s) are enzymes with diverse functions influencing plant growth, development, and responses to abiotic stresses. However, there is relatively little information available regarding the maize HECT E3 gene family. In the present study, 12 maize HECT E3 genes (ZmUPL1 to ZmUPL12) were identified at the whole-genome level. The phylogenetic relationships, structures, and expression levels of the maize HECT E3 genes were then analyzed. On the basis of the constructed maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree, the HECT E3 genes were divided into six groups. The quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assay results revealed that all of the maize ZmUPL genes were expressed in most of the examined tissues and were responsive to three abiotic stresses. Considered together, the study results may provide a useful foundation for future investigations of maize stress-tolerance genes as well as functional analyses of the E3 enzymes in diverse agriculturally important crop species.

中文翻译：

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玉米HECT E3泛素连接酶基因的全基因组鉴定、系统发育和表达分析

HECT（与 E6AP 羧基末端同源）泛素连接酶基因 (E3s) 是具有影响植物生长、发育和对非生物胁迫响应的多种功能的酶。然而，关于玉米 HECT E3 基因家族的可用信息相对较少。在本研究中，在全基因组水平上鉴定了 12 个玉米 HECT E3 基因（ZmUPL1 到 ZmUPL12）。然后分析了玉米 HECT E3 基因的系统发育关系、结构和表达水平。在构建的最大似然系统发育树的基础上，将HECT E3基因分为六组。定量实时聚合酶链反应测定结果显示所有玉米 ZmUPL 基因在大多数检查的组织中表达，并且对三种非生物胁迫有反应。综合考虑，