Genome-Wide Identification and Colchicine-Responsive Expression Profiling of the Tubulins (TUA and TUB) Gene Family in Phoebe bournei

Phoebe bournei is an economically and ecologically important woody species native to China. As a core component of colchicine-triggered polyploid breeding, the tubulin genes (TUA and TUB) have been identified and functionally analyzed in many plants, but not yet in P. bournei. Here, tubulin family members in P. bournei were identified through sequence alignment and subsequently characterized using comprehensive bioinformatic analyses. In particular, a total of six PbTUA and ten PbTUB members were identified and grouped into two and five subfamilies, respectively, according to phylogenetic relationships. Most tubulin proteins were small (414–522 aa) with predicted stability. Furthermore, 36 collinear gene pairs were identified, suggesting a possible contribution to the evolutionary expansion of this family. For different tissues, the expression levels of most tubulin genes were generally lower in leaves but higher in roots. Besides, treatment with 1.0% colchicine inhibited the expression of all 15 tubulin genes except PbTUB6. These results provide preliminary insights into tubulin genes associated with polyploid induction and supply candidate genes for future functional studies toward polyploid germplasm creation of P. bournei.