Legume Genomics and Genetics 2025, Vol.16, No.3, 128-134 http://cropscipublisher.com/index.php/lgg 133 7 Conclusions and Perspectives Among leguminous plants, the NS-LRR gene is the most numerous and has the closest relationship with disease resistance, and adzuki beans are no exception. However, if you look at related species like the kidney bean, many whole-genome studies have long sorted out these gene families very clearly. They can be roughly divided into two categories: TIR-NB-LRR (TNL) and CC-NB-LRR (CNL), and they are basically present on every chromosome. These genes often appear near key sites that combat major pathogens such as anthracnose and common bacterial blight. It is precisely because of the assistance of expression profiling analysis and some molecular markers (such as NBS-SSR markers) that researchers can accurately identify candidate disease-resistant genes and verify them, laying the foundation for subsequent functional research and breeding. But then again, this road is actually not that smooth. Although some progress has been remarkable, most of the data we currently have at hand is still focused on model plants or other leguminous crops. As for the small beans themselves, the direct research on them is not yet comprehensive and in-depth enough. Not to mention figuring out exactly how a specific NBS-LRR gene functions, how it is regulated, and how it participates in the disease resistance mechanism. These issues remain undetermined at present. Moreover, don't forget that the evolutionary changes among such genes are rapid and there may be redundancy, all of which make the search for key resistance factors even more challenging. Future research will probably have to be more focused, such as mapping out more detailed genetic maps, verifying functions (like gene editing and transgenic), and combining data from different omics to gradually understand the complex mechanisms behind it. The relevant research on the NS-LRR gene has indeed opened a door for molecular breeding of adzuki beans. For instance, NBS-SSR markers, when used in marker-assisted selection, can significantly accelerate the breeding speed of disease-resistant varieties. Each time a new resistance locus or allele is discovered, the breeder's toolbox becomes one more item, and there is greater hope of developing varieties that can both have a broad spectrum of disease resistance and are less likely to "fail". In the long run, deeply exploring the value of the NS-LRR gene family is not only for the benefit of small beans, but also can enhance the stress resistance of the entire leguminous crop family, improve yield stability, and even have certain significance for food security. Acknowledgments We are grateful to Dr. W. Wang for this assistance with the serious reading and helpful discussions during the course of this work. Conflict of Interest Disclosure The authors affirm that this research was conducted without any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. References Afzal M., Alghamdi S., Nawaz H., Migdadi H., Altaf M., El-Harty E., and Al-Fifi S., 2021, Genome-wide identification and expression analysis of CC-NB-ARC-LRR (NB-ARC) disease-resistant family members from soybean (Glycine max L.) reveal their response to biotic stress, Journal of King Saud University-Science, 34: 101758. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jksus.2021.101758 Andolfo G., Dohm J., and Himmelbauer H., 2022, Prediction of NB‐LRR resistance genes based on full‐length sequence homology, The Plant Journal, 110: 1592-1602. https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.15756 Bezerra-Neto J., Araújo F., Ferreira-Neto J., Silva R., Borges A., Da Silva Matos M., Silva J., Silva M., Kido É., and Benko-Iseppon A., 2020, NBS-LRR genes-plant health sentinels: structure, roles, evolution and biotechnological applications, Applied Plant Biotechnology for Improving Resistance to Biotic Stress, 4: 63-120. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-816030-5.00004-5 Kang Y., Kim K., Shim S., Yoon M., Sun S., Kim M., Van K., and Lee S., 2012, Genome-wide mapping of NBS-LRR genes and their association with disease resistance in soybean, BMC Plant Biology, 12: 139. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2229-12-139 Liu J., Cheng Y., Ruan M., Ye Q., Wang R., Yao Z., Zhou G., Liu C., and Wan H., 2025, Phylogenetic, structural, and evolutionary insights into pepper NBS-LRR resistance genes, International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 26(5): 1828. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26051828
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