PCNA — Cicer arietinum

Summary

LOC101508463, designated CaPCNA, encodes a proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) that is a processivity clamp and is associated with DNA-directed DNA polymerase activity, damaged DNA binding, SUMO transferase activity, and histone H3K27 methylase activity. This chickpea gene on chromosome 5 is associated with DNA replication and repair processes including bypass DNA synthesis, mismatch repair, interstrand crosslink repair, homologous recombination, and double-strand break repair via synthesis-dependent strand annealing. CaPCNA is linked to cell cycle modulation, anther dehiscence, UV protection, and responses to oxidative stress and abscisic acid. It localizes to the PCNA complex, nucleolus, chloroplast stroma, plasmodesma, and apoplast. The gene is associated with traits including radiation response, UV light sensitivity, pollen fertility restoration, stomatal opening, flowering time, root morphology, and salt tolerance. Studies of related genes in other species link the PCNA family to DNA replication, cadmium response, immune response, and thermo-resilience.