The Receptor-like Kinase TaCRK-7A Inhibits Fusarium pseudograminearum Growth and Mediates Resistance to Fusarium Crown Rot in Wheat

The fungus F. pseudograminearum can cause the destructive disease Fusarium crown rot (FCR) of wheat, an important staple crop. Functional roles of FCR resistance genes in wheat are largely unknown. In the current research, we characterized the antifungal activity and positive-regulatory function of the cysteine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase TaCRK-7A in the defense against F. pseudograminearum in wheat. Antifungal assays showed that the purified TaCRK-7A protein inhibited the growth of F. pseudograminearum. TaCRK-7A transcript abundance was elevated after F. pseudograminearum attack and was positively related to FCR-resistance levels of wheat cultivars. Intriguingly, knocking down of TaCRK-7A transcript increased susceptibility of wheat to FCR and decreased transcript levels of defense-marker genes in wheat. Furthermore, the transcript abundances of TaCRK-7A and its modulated-defense genes were responsive to exogenous jasmonate treatment. Taken together, these results suggest that TaCRK-7A can directly inhibit F. pseudograminearum growth and mediates FCR-resistance by promoting the expression of wheat defense genes in the jasmonate pathway. Thus, TaCRK-7A is a potential gene resource in FCR-resistant wheat breeding program.

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Comparing transcriptional responses to Fusarium crown rot in wheat and barley identified an important relationship between disease resistance and drought tolerance

BMC Plant Biology ◽

10.1186/s12870-020-02818-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Z. Y. Su ◽

J. J. Powell ◽

S. Gao ◽

M. Zhou ◽

C. Liu

Keyword(s):

Drought Stress ◽

Drought Tolerance ◽

Crown Rot ◽

Differentially Expressed ◽

Transcriptional Responses ◽

Drought Treatment ◽

Crop Species ◽

Fusarium Crown Rot ◽

Important Relationship ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background Fusarium crown rot (FCR) is a chronic disease in cereal production worldwide. The impact of this disease is highly environmentally dependant and significant yield losses occur mainly in drought-affected crops. Results In the study reported here, we evaluated possible relationships between genes conferring FCR resistance and drought tolerance using two approaches. The first approach studied FCR induced differentially expressed genes (DEGs) targeting two barley and one wheat loci against a panel of genes curated from the literature based on known functions in drought tolerance. Of the 149 curated genes, 61.0% were responsive to FCR infection across the three loci. The second approach was a comparison of the global DEGs induced by FCR infection with the global transcriptomic responses under drought in wheat. This analysis found that approximately 48.0% of the DEGs detected one week following drought treatment and 74.4% of the DEGs detected three weeks following drought treatment were also differentially expressed between the susceptible and resistant isolines under FCR infection at one or more timepoints. As for the results from the first approach, the vast majority of common DEGs were downregulated under drought and expressed more highly in the resistant isoline than the sensitive isoline under FCR infection. Conclusions Results from this study suggest that the resistant isoline in wheat was experiencing less drought stress, which could contribute to the stronger defence response than the sensitive isoline. However, most of the genes induced by drought stress in barley were more highly expressed in the susceptible isolines than the resistant isolines under infection, indicating that genes conferring drought tolerance and FCR resistance may interact differently between these two crop species. Nevertheless, the strong relationship between FCR resistance and drought responsiveness provides further evidence indicating the possibility to enhance FCR resistance by manipulating genes conferring drought tolerance.

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Colonization of Durum Wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var. durum) Culms Exhibiting Premature Senescence (Dead Heads) Associated with Fusarium pseudograminearum Crown Rot

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-03-17-0415-re ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 101 (10) ◽

pp. 1788-1794 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Noel L. Knight ◽

Bethany Macdonald ◽

Mark W. Sutherland

Keyword(s):

Durum Wheat ◽

Disease Susceptibility ◽

Triticum Turgidum ◽

Crown Rot ◽

Vascular Bundles ◽

Fusarium Crown Rot ◽

Fusarium Pseudograminearum ◽

Field Samples ◽

Key Factor ◽

Significant Disease

Fusarium crown rot is a significant disease of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var. durum), which exhibits high levels of disease susceptibility. The most extreme symptom of crown rot is a prematurely senescing culm that typically fails to set grain. Individual crown rot-affected durum wheat plants displaying both nonsenescent and prematurely senescent culms were harvested to compare visual discoloration, Fusarium pseudograminearum biomass, and vascular colonization in culm sections sampled at three different heights above the crown. Field samples of EGA Bellaroi were collected at Wellcamp, QLD, in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014, and of Hyperno at Narrabri, NSW, in 2014. Prematurely senescent culms exhibited greater visual discoloration, F. pseudograminearum biomass, and vascular colonization than nonsenescent culms in each year they were examined. The extent of these differences varied between environments and timing of collection in each year. Vascular colonization initially occurred in xylem vessels and spread into phloem tissues as disease severity increased. The increased presence of hyphae in vascular bundles of prematurely senescing culms provides strong evidence for the hypothesis that restriction of water and nutrient movement in a diseased culm is a key factor in crown rot severity.

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Development of tightly linked markers and identification of candidate genes for Fusarium crown rot resistance in barley by exploiting a near-isogenic line-derived population

Theoretical and Applied Genetics ◽

10.1007/s00122-018-3209-0 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 132 (1) ◽

pp. 217-225 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Yunfeng Jiang ◽

Ahsan Habib ◽

Zhi Zheng ◽

Meixue Zhou ◽

Yuming Wei ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Candidate Genes ◽

Crown Rot ◽

Isogenic Line ◽

Near Isogenic Line ◽

Fusarium Crown Rot

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Genetic Variance for Fusarium Crown Rot Tolerance in Durum Wheat

10.1101/2020.10.05.326058 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Gururaj Kadkol ◽

Jess Meza ◽

Steven Simpfendorfer ◽

Steve Harden ◽

Brian Cullis

Keyword(s):

Durum Wheat ◽

Bread Wheat ◽

Genetic Variance ◽

Field Trials ◽

Crown Rot ◽

Tolerance Index ◽

Fusarium Crown Rot ◽

N Yield ◽

Good Repeatability ◽

Tolerance Indices

AbstractTolerance to the cereal disease Fusarium crown rot (FCR) was investigated in a set of 34 durum wheat genotypes, with Suntop, (bread wheat) and EGA Bellaroi (durum) as tolerant and intolerant checks, in a series of replicated field trials over four years with inoculated (FCR-i) and non-inoculated (FCR-n) plots of the genotypes. The genotypes included conventional durum lines and lines derived from crossing durum with 2-49, a bread wheat line with the highest level of partial resistance to FCR. A split plot trial design was chosen to optimize the efficiency for the prediction of FCR tolerance for each genotype. A multi-environment trial (MET) analysis was undertaken which indicated that there was good repeatability of FCR tolerance across years. Based on an FCR tolerance index, Suntop was the most tolerant genotype and EGA Bellaroi was very intolerant, but many durum wheats had FCR tolerance indices which were comparable to Suntop. These included some conventional durum lines, V101030, TD1702, V11TD013*3X-63 and DBA Bindaroi, as well as genotypes from crosses with 2-49 (V114916 and V114942). The correlation between FCR tolerance and FCR-n yield predictions was moderately negative indicating it could be somewhat difficult to develop high yielding FCR-tolerant genotypes. However, FCR tolerance showed a positive correlation with FCR-i yield predictions in seasons of high disease expression indicating it could be possible to screen for FCR tolerance using only FCR-i treatments. These results are the first demonstration of genetic diversity in durum germplasm for FCR tolerance and they provide a basis for breeding for this trait.

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Genetic Determinants of Wheat Resistance to Common Root Rot (Spot Blotch), Fusarium Crown Rot, and Sharp Eyespot

10.1101/2020.07.30.228932 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jun Su ◽

Jiaojie Zhao ◽

Shuqing Zhao ◽

Mengyu Li ◽

Xiaofeng Shang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Root Rot ◽

Spot Blotch ◽

Crown Rot ◽

Genetic Determinants ◽

Common Root ◽

Fusarium Crown Rot ◽

Common Root Rot ◽

Sharp Eyespot ◽

Root And Crown Rot ◽

Moderate Resistance

Due to the field soil changes, high density planting, and straw-returning methods, wheat common root rot (spot blotch), Fusarium crown rot (FCR), and sharp eyespot have become severe threatens to global wheat productions. Only a few wheat genotypes show moderate resistance to these root and crown rot fungal diseases, and the genetic determinants of wheat resistance to these devastating diseases have been poorly understood. This review summarizes the recent progress of genetic studies on wheat resistance to common root rot, Fusarium crown rot, and sharp eyespot. Wheat germplasms with relative higher resistance are highlighted and genetic loci controlling the resistance to each of the disease are summarized.

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