A fungal RNA-dependent RNA polymerase is a novel player in plant infection and cross-kingdom RNA interference.
PLoS Pathog
; 19(12): e1011885, 2023 Dec.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38117848
ABSTRACT
Small RNAs act as fungal pathogen effectors that silence host target genes to promote infection, a virulence mechanism termed cross-kingdom RNA interference (RNAi). The essential pathogen factors of cross-kingdom small RNA production are largely unknown. We here characterized the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RDR)1 in the fungal plant pathogen Botrytis cinerea that is required for pathogenicity and cross-kingdom RNAi. B. cinerea bcrdr1 knockout (ko) mutants exhibited reduced pathogenicity and loss of cross-kingdom small RNAs. We developed a "switch-on" GFP reporter to study cross-kingdom RNAi in real-time within the living plant tissue which highlighted that bcrdr1 ko mutants were compromised in cross-kingdom RNAi. Moreover, blocking seven pathogen cross-kingdom small RNAs by expressing a short-tandem target mimic RNA in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana led to reduced infection levels of the fungal pathogen B. cinerea and the oomycete pathogen Hyaloperonospora arabidopsidis. These results demonstrate that cross-kingdom RNAi is significant to promote host infection and making pathogen small RNAs an effective target for crop protection.
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
RNA Polimerase Dependente de RNA
/
Arabidopsis
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2023
Tipo de documento:
Article