SUCS — Cicer arietinum

Summary

CaSUCS (LOC101494314) on chickpea chromosome 7 encodes a protein with sucrose synthase activity, transglycosidase activity, and DNA-binding transcription factor activity. It is associated with sucrose metabolism, starch breakdown, the pentose-phosphate shunt, nitrogen fixation, auxin polar transport, and responses to flooding, sorbitol, mannitol, nitrate starvation, glucose, and cold acclimation. The protein localizes to the cytosol, nucleus, vacuole, and plasmodesmata. CaSUCS is linked to grain yield, seed weight, harvest index, total soluble sugar and sucrose content, photosynthetic rate, chlorophyll content, carotenoid content, anthocyanin content, iron concentration, brassinosteroid content, photoperiod sensitivity, vegetative-to-reproductive phase transition, and stress responses including hypoxia, drought, and temperature extremes. Studies of related genes in other species connect the sucrose synthase family to starch and cellulose biosynthesis, carbon allocation, and anaerobic stress responses.