Evolutionary and structural analysis of the aquaporin gene family in rice

Aquaporins in rice (Oryza sativa L.) represent a pivotal class of transmembrane channel proteins that mediate the bidirectional transport of water and small solutes, which have critical functions in cellular osmoregulation and ion homeostasis maintenance. Their evolutionary diversity and functional plasticity constitute fundamental mechanisms underlying the adaptive responses to diversified environmental challenges. This review systematically summarizes rice AQPs’ evolutionary origins, structural characteristics, and spatiotemporal expression patterns under both physiological and stress conditions, highlighting the high conservation of their key functional domains across evolution and their environment-driven functional diversification. The molecular mechanisms governing AQPs in water utilization, nutrient uptake, and stress responses are unraveled. Furthermore, the potential of precision gene editing and multi-omics integration is discussed to decipher the intricate relationships between AQP evolutionary history, environmental adaptability, and functional specialization, thereby providing a theoretical basis for advancing crop stress resistance and high-quality breeding.