Exogenous Indole-3-Acetic Acid Suppresses Rice Infection of Magnaporthe oryzae by Affecting Plant Resistance and Fungal Growth.

Auxin is an important phytohormone that regulates diverse biologic processes, including plant growth and immunity. Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), known as one of the main forms of auxin, is able to activate plant immunity. However, it is unknown whether IAA enhances plant resistance and/or suppresses the growth of the fungal pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae. Here, we found that IAA could induce expression levels of pathogenesis-related genes to enhance disease resistance and could control the development of blast disease through inhibiting M. oryzae infection. Exogenous IAA suppressed mycelial growth and delayed spore germination by inhibiting fungal endogenous IAA biosynthesis and impairing redox homeostasis, respectively. When applied to a field test, two IAA analogues, 1-naphthaleneacetic acid and 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid, can effectively control rice blast disease. Our study advances the understanding of IAA in controlling rice blast disease through suppressing pathogen growth and enhancing plant resistance.

Sclerenchyma cell thickening through enhanced lignification induced by OsMYB30 prevents fungal penetration of rice leaves.

Broad-spectrum resistance is highly preferred in crop breeding programmes. Previously, we have reported the identification of the broad-spectrum resistance-Digu 1 (bsr-d1) allele from rice Digu. The bsr-d1 allele prevents activation of Bsr-d1 expression by Magnaporthe oryzae infection and degradation of H2 O2 by peroxidases, leading to resistance to M. oryzae. However, it remains unknown whether defence pathways other than H2 O2 burst and peroxidases contribute to the bsr-d1-mediated immunity. Blast resistance was determined in rice leaves by spray and punch inoculations. Target genes of OsMYB30 were identified by one-hybrid assays in yeast and electrophoretic mobility shift assay. Lignin content was measured by phloroglucinol-HCl staining, and acetyl bromide and thioacidolysis methods. Here, we report the involvement of the OsMYB30 gene in bsr-d1-mediated blast resistance. Expression of OsMYB30 was induced during M. oryzae infection or when Bsr-d1 was knocked out or downregulated, as occurs in bsr-d1 plants upon infection. We further found that OsMYB30 bound to and activated the promoters of 4-coumarate:coenzyme A ligase genes (Os4CL3 and Os4CL5) resulting in accumulation of lignin subunits G and S. This action led to obvious thickening of sclerenchyma cells near the epidermis, inhibiting M. oryzae penetration at the early stage of infection. Our study revealed novel components required for bsr-d1-mediated resistance and penetration-dependent immunity, and advanced our understanding of broad-spectrum disease resistance.

Magnaporthe oryzae effector MoSPAB1 directly activates rice Bsr-d1 expression to facilitate pathogenesis.

Fungal pathogens typically use secreted effector proteins to suppress host immune activators to facilitate invasion. However, there is rarely evidence supporting the idea that fungal secretory proteins contribute to pathogenesis by transactivating host genes that suppress defense. We previously found that pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae induces rice Bsr-d1 to facilitate infection and hypothesized that a fungal effector mediates this induction. Here, we report that MoSPAB1 secreted by M. oryzae directly binds to the Bsr-d1 promoter to induce its expression, facilitating pathogenesis. Amino acids 103-123 of MoSPAB1 are required for its binding to the Bsr-d1 promoter. Both MoSPAB1 and rice MYBS1 compete for binding to the Bsr-d1 promoter to regulate Bsr-d1 expression. Furthermore, MoSPAB1 homologues are highly conserved among fungi. In particular, Colletotrichum fructicola CfSPAB1 and Colletotrichum sublineola CsSPAB1 activate kiwifruit AcBsr-d1 and sorghum SbBsr-d1 respectively, to facilitate pathogenesis. Taken together, our findings reveal a conserved module that may be widely utilized by fungi to enhance pathogenesis.

Dual pH-responsive charge-reversal and photo-crosslinkable polymer nanoparticles for controlled drug release.

In this article, we introduce a pH-responsive charge-reversible and photo-crosslinkable polymer nanoparticle. It is prepared via typical self-assembly from a block copolymer poly((7-(4-vinyl-benzyloxyl)-4-methylcoumarin)-co-acrylicacid)-b-poly((2-dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate)-co-styrene) (P(VBMC-co-AA)-b-P(DMAEMA-co-St)), whose two blocks have different ionizable moieties. In an aqueous solution of pH ≤ 4, the cationic polymer nanoparticles are formed due to the fully protonated PDMAEMA. At a pH ranging from 5.0 to 7.8, partially ionized PAA and protonated PDMAEMA lead to the formation of polymer nanoparticles with a mixed shell. In a pH range of 8-10, a large amount of precipitation is produced within the isoelectric point (IEP) region because of the weak hydrophilic two blocks. In an aqueous solution of pH ≥ 10, polymer nanoparticles are reformed with PAA shell and P(DMAEMA-co-St) core. The coumarin groups of polymer can undergo photo-crosslinking and photo-cleavage reactions under UV light irradiation at λ = 365 nm and λ = 254 nm, respectively. The reversible nature of the photo-reaction can regulate the reversal of polymer nanoparticles. Furthermore, the aggregation-induced fluorescence emission (AIFE) property of polymer nanoparticles at different pH is tested by fluorescence emission spectra. The results indicate that the aggregation state of coumarin blocks in solution also changes with the pH value. The DOX release experiment in vitro shows that the release behavior of DOX-loaded nanoparticles can be adjusted by pH and light to achieve significant control. The inhibitory effect on the growth of tumor cells is displayed by cellular uptake and cytotoxicity test in vitro. The self-assembly system of polymer nanoparticles can be cooperatively controlled by multiple stimulations and displays potential applications in controlled drug delivery.

New insights into bsr-d1-mediated broad-spectrum resistance to rice blast.

bsr-d1, an allele encoding a transcription factor identified from the rice cultivar Digu, confers durable, broad-spectrum resistance to infections by strains of Magnaporthe oryzae. bsr-d1 was predicted to inhibit M. oryzae-induced expression of Bsr-d1 RNA and degradation of hydrogen peroxide to achieve resistance to M. oryzae. However, the global effect of biological process and molecular function on blast resistance mediated by Bsr-d1 remains unknown. In this study, we compared transcriptomic profiling between Bsr-d1 knockout (Bsr-d1KO) lines and the wild type, TP309. Our study revealed that bsr-d1 mainly regulates the redox state of plant cells, but also affects amino acid and unsaturated fatty acid metabolism. We further found that BSR-D1 indirectly regulates salicylic acid biosynthesis, metabolism, and signal transduction downstream of the activation of H2 O2 signalling in the bsr-d1-mediated immune response. Furthermore, we identified a novel peroxidase-encoding gene, Perox3, as a new BSR-D1 target gene that reduces resistance to M. oryzae when overexpressed in TP309. These results provide new insights into the bsr-d1-mediated blast resistance.

Self-Assembly Behavior and pH-Stimuli-Responsive Property of POSS-Based Amphiphilic Block Copolymers in Solution.

Stimuli-responsive polymeric systems containing special responsive moieties can undergo alteration of chemical structures and physical properties in response to external stimulus. We synthesized a hybrid amphiphilic block copolymer containing methoxy polyethylene glycol (MePEG), methacrylate isobutyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (MAPOSS) and 2-(diisopropylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DPA) named MePEG-b-P(MAPOSS-co-DPA) via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). Spherical micelles with a core-shell structure were obtained by a self-assembly process based on MePEG-b-P(MAPOSS-co-DPA), which showed a pH-responsive property. The influence of hydrophobic chain length on the self-assembly behavior was also studied. The pyrene release properties of micelles and their ability of antifouling were further studied.

Novel azobenzene-based amphiphilic copolymers: synthesis, self-assembly behavior and multiple-stimuli-responsive properties.

A series of novel azobenzene-based amphiphilic random copolymers P(POSSMA-co-AZOMA-co-DMAEMA) were synthesized via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. A light and reduction dual-responsive azo group, pH-responsive tertiary amine group and super hydrophobic POSS moiety were incorporated into the polymer chain to generate multi-stimuli-responsiveness. Self-assembly of these amphiphilic copolymers led to the formation of spherical micelles in aqueous solution. The light, pH and reduction responsive properties of the micelles were investigated systematically by DLS, TEM, UV-vis, FTIR and NMR. The azo groups can undergo trans-cis isomerization under UV light irradiation, thus causing a diameter change of the micelles. Owing to the large proportion of tertiary amine groups in amphiphiles, these micelles showed sensitive pH-response behavior. The hydrophobic azo pendant in the polymer chain completely reduced to a more hydrophilic substituted aniline in a reductive environment, resulting in the increase of overall hydrophilicity of amphiphiles and the disassembly of polymeric micelles. Owing to these multi-stimuli-responses, the polymeric micelles showed rapid and efficient release properties of hydrophobic molecules in response to pH and reductive stimuli.

Correction: Novel azobenzene-based amphiphilic copolymers: synthesis, self-assembly behavior and multiple-stimuli-responsive properties.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1039/C8RA01660G.].