*4.8. Differential Expression of Phenylpropane Secondary Metabolic Pathway Genes in Transgenic and Control Rice Plants*

Expression of phenylpropane secondary metabolic pathway-related genes in control and transgenic rice was analyzed by qRT-PCR. Rice were grown to the four-leaf stage in Hoagland nutrient solution, then treated with 6% PEG for three days. RNA was extracted and reverse transcribed into cDNA, which was used as template for qRT-PCR. Primers used in qRT-PCR are listed in Supplemental Table S4.

## **5. Conclusions**

A total of 10 *LIM* protein-coding genes were identified in foxtail millet via a genome-wide analysis. Analysis of evolutionary relationships indicated that *SiLIM* genes could be divided into two large subgroups. The chromosome positions, gene structures, functional domains and promoters of the *SiLIM* genes were also analyzed. The *SiWLIM2b* gene was found to respond to various abiotic stresses and hormone treatments, and overexpression of the *SiWLIM2b* gene in rice improved drought tolerance.

## **Supplementary Materials:** Supplementary Materials can be found at http://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/20/6/ 1303/s1.

**Author Contributions:** M.C. coordinated the project, conceived and designed experiments, and edited the manuscript; J.-C.S. provided experimental data; J.C. and Y.-B.Z. conducted the bioinformatics work and analyzed the data; Z.-S.X., D.-H.M. and X.-H.Z. contributed valuable discussion; Y.Y. provided experimental assistance to R.Y.; R.Y. drafted the manuscript and prepared the figures and tables; Y.-Z.M. coordinated the project. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

**Funding:** This work was supported by the National Key Project for Research on Transgenic Biology [2016ZX08002-002] and the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program (ASTIP, Transgenic Technology and Application of Crops, and Development and Application of Molecular Markers in Crops).

**Acknowledgments:** We thank Xianmin Diao, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, for providing foxtail millet seeds.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
