Genome-wide characterization of the tomato PERK gene family and its expression profiling under abiotic stresses.
UNLABELLED: This study presents the first systematic genome-wide characterization of the proline-rich extensin-like receptor kinases (PERK) gene family in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and their transcriptional responses under abiotic stresses. Using the latest SL4.0/ITAG4.0 genome assembly, we identified six SlPERK genes, all harboring the conserved Ser/Thr protein kinase domain. Evolutionary and structural analyses revealed strong purifying selection (Ka/Ks < 1), distinct exon-intron organizations, and the presence of stress- and hormone-responsive cis-regulatory elements in their promoters. Furthermore, post-transcriptional regulation by 57 miRNAs and complex protein-protein interaction networks were predicted. To validate their stress-responsive roles, two tomato cultivars (GMOTL-1 and Roma) were subjected to cold, heat, and salinity treatments. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed cultivar-specific expression dynamics: SlPERK4 exhibited strong transient induction under cold and heat stress, while SlPERK6 was highly responsive to salinity. Notably, the GMOTL-1 cultivar displayed significantly higher and broader stress-responsive expression profiles compared to Roma, indicating a potential role of these SlPERK genes in cultivar-specific stress tolerance. These findings provide a comprehensive genomic resource and establish a critical foundation for the functional validation and molecular breeding for stress-resilience tomato cultivars. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s13205-026-05044-y.