| Summary: | The <i>AT-hook motif containing nuclear localized (AHL)</i> gene family, controlling various developmental processes, is conserved in land plants. They comprise Plant and Prokaryote Conserved (PPC) domain and one or two AT-hook motifs. <i>DcAHLc1</i> has been proposed as a candidate gene governing the formation of the carrot storage root. We identified and in-silico characterized carrot AHL proteins, performed phylogenetic analyses, investigated their expression profiles and constructed gene coexpression networks. We found 47 <i>AHL</i> genes in carrot and grouped them into two clades, A and B, comprising 29 and 18 genes, respectively. Within Clade-A, we distinguished three subclades, one of them grouping noncanonical <i>AHLs</i> differing in their structure (two PPC domains) and/or cellular localization (not nucleus). Coexpression network analysis attributed <i>AHLs</i> expressed in carrot roots into four of the 72 clusters, some of them showing a large number of interactions. Determination of expression profiles of <i>AHL</i> genes in various tissues and samples provided basis to hypothesize on their possible roles in the development of the carrot storage root. We identified a group of rapidly evolving noncanonical <i>AHLs</i>, possibly differing functionally from typical <i>AHLs</i>, as suggested by their expression profiles and their predicted cellular localization. We pointed at several <i>AHLs</i> likely involved in the development of the carrot storage root.
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