Based on whole genome identification and analysis of soybean LOX gene family members, to understand the taxonomic evolutionary relationships of each member, to study the expression specificity of each gene member in different tissues and their response to abiotic stress, which provided a theoretical basis for further research on the molecular characteristics, evolutionary process, and function of the LOX gene family.

Based on the LOX protein sequences of rice and Arabidopsis species in Ensembl database, BLASTP alignment of homologous LOX protein sequences in soybean whole genome database was performed, and MEGA X software was used to construct a phylogenetic tree; Using website MEME for protein conserved motif analysis; Using online software GSDS 2.0 to analyze gene structure; Using TBtools for chromosome localization drawing; Analyze soybean LOX family replication genes using McscanX; Using the PlantCARE website to predict the promoter elements of soybean LOX gene family; Draw gene expression heatmaps of soybean under different tissues and abiotic stress using TBtools, and develop molecular markers for the excellent allele variant GmLOX15A1^-G/A significantly correlated with 100-seed weight.

A total of 43 LOX genes were identified in soybean, unevenly distributed on 13 chromosomes. Collinearity analysis indicates that the GmLOX gene has undergone extensive replication during the evolutionary process. Meanwhile, 39 different types of cis regulatory elements were detected in the LOX gene promoter, indicating that they may be involved in different pathways such as growth and development, light response, stress response, and hormone induction. Expression pattern analysis revealed that the LOX gene has different levels of expression in different tissues of soybean, indicating that members of this family have tissue and spatiotemporal expression specificity. Under drought stress conditions, the GmLOX gene was significantly differentially expressed in soybean roots and leaves (P<0.05). Among them, GmLOX3A3, GmLOX7A1, GmLOX20B1, GmLOX13A1, and GmLOX20A2 were significantly upregulated or downregulated in roots and leaves, suggesting that the GmLOX gene may play an important role in response to stress. At the same time, it was found that GmLOX15A1 is highly expressed in grain tissue and there is an excellent G/A allele variation in the seventh exon of the gene coding region. Molecular markers were developed for this variant site, and the correlation between different haplotypes of GmLOX15A1 and 100-seed weight was analyzed using 1 200 soybean germplasm resources from different ecological regions over a period of 2 years. The results showed that compared to the GmLOX15A1^-A genotype, the average 100-seed weight of soybean germplasm carrying the GmLOX15A1^-G allele gene increased by 2.33 g (P<0.001).

A total of 43 members of the LOX family were identified in soybeans, which can be divided into 3 subfamilies. The promoter region of the GmLOX gene contains a large number of cis acting elements that respond to hormones and stress, playing different roles in drought stress response. Among them, GmLOX15A1 is highly expressed in grain tissue and there is an excellent G/A allele variation in the seventh exon of the coding region of this gene. Compared with the GmLOX15A1^-A genotype, the average 100-seed weight of soybean germplasm carrying the GmLOX15A1^-G allele gene is significantly increased by 2.33 g. This locus can be used as an excellent haplotype for genetic improvement of soybean grain size.