KC1 — Sorghum bicolor

Summary

SbKC1 (SORBI_3003G300600) on sorghum chromosome 3 encodes a protein of the KAT/AKT family, with outward rectifier potassium channel activity, ion transporter activity, and additional annotated molecular functions including ATPase inhibitor activity and protein phosphatase activity. The gene is associated with regulation of membrane potential, upregulation of stomatal opening, potassium ion homeostasis and transport, response to basic pH, hypotonic salinity response, and cell plate formation. It has been linked to numerous agronomic traits including yield, leaf necrosis tolerance, water stress response, transpiration rate, stomatal complex closure time, days to flowering, root mass density, lateral root length, nitrate uptake, sucrose content, and responses to aluminum, cadmium, and magnesium. Localization evidence connects the product to the plasma membrane, pollen tube tip, cell plate, and vesicle compartments. Studies of related genes in other species link the family to potassium translocation, stomatal opening, drought and salt stress tolerance, and grain development.