QTL mapping and transcriptome analysis identify novel QTLs and candidate genes in Brassica villosa for quantitative resistance against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum.

KEY MESSAGE: Novel QTLs and candidate genes for Sclerotinia-resistance were identified in B. villosa, a wild Brassica species, which represents a new genetic source for improving oilseed rape resistance to SSR. Sclerotinia stem rot (SSR), caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, is one of the most destructive diseases in oilseed rape growing regions. To date, there is no effective genetic resistance against S. sclerotiorum in the B. napus germplasm and knowledge of the molecular plant-fungal interaction is also limited. To identify new resistance resources, we screened a set of wild Brassica species and identified B. villosa (BRA1896) with a high level of Sclerotinia-resistance. Two segregating F2 populations for Sclerotinia-resistance, generated by interspecific crosses between the resistant B. villosa (BRA1896) and the wild susceptible B. oleracea (BRA1909) were assessed for Sclerotinia-resistance. Genetic mapping using a 15-k Illumina Infinium SNP-array resulted in a high-density genetic map containing 1,118 SNP markers and spanning a total genetic length of 792.2 cM. QTL analysis revealed seven QTLs explaining 3.8% to 16.5% of phenotypic variance. Intriguingly, RNAseq-based transcriptome analysis identified genes and pathways specific to B. villosa, of which a cluster of five genes encoding putative receptor-like kinases (RLKs) and two pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins are co-localized within a QTL on chromosome C07. Furthermore, transcriptomic analysis revealed enhanced ethylene (ET)-activated signaling in the resistant B. villosa, which is associated with a stronger plant immune response, depressed cell death, and enhanced phytoalexin biosynthesis compared to the susceptible B. oleracea. Our data demonstrates that B. villosa represents a novel and unique genetic source for improving oilseed rape resistance against SSR.

Loss of function of CRT1a (calreticulin) reduces plant susceptibility to Verticillium longisporum in both Arabidopsis thaliana and oilseed rape (Brassica napus).

Brassica napus is highly susceptible towards Verticillium longisporum (Vl43) with no effective genetic resistance. It is believed that the fungus reprogrammes plant physiological processes by up-regulation of so-called susceptibility factors to establish a compatible interaction. By transcriptome analysis, we identified genes, which were activated/up-regulated in rapeseed after Vl43 infection. To test whether one of these genes is functionally involved in the infection process and loss of function would lead to decreased susceptibility, we firstly challenged KO lines of corresponding Arabidopsis orthologs with Vl43 and compared them with wild-type plants. Here, we report that the KO of AtCRT1a results in drastically reduced susceptibility of plants to Vl43. To prove crt1a mutation also decreases susceptibility in B. napus, we identified 10 mutations in a TILLING population. Three T3 mutants displayed increased resistance as compared to the wild type. To validate the results, we generated CRISPR/Cas-induced BnCRT1a mutants, challenged T2 plants with Vl43 and observed an overall reduced susceptibility in 3 out of 4 independent lines. Genotyping by allele-specific sequencing suggests a major effect of mutations in the CRT1a A-genome copy, while the C-genome copy appears to have no significant impact on plant susceptibility when challenged with Vl43. As revealed by transcript analysis, the loss of function of CRT1a results in activation of the ethylene signalling pathway, which may contribute to reduced susceptibility. Furthermore, this study demonstrates a novel strategy with great potential to improve plant disease resistance.

An assessment of the species diversity and disease potential of Pythium communities in Europe.

Pythium sensu lato (s.l.) is a genus of parasitic oomycetes that poses a serious threat to agricultural production worldwide, but their severity is often neglected because little knowledge about them is available. Using an internal transcribed spacer (ITS) amplicon-based-metagenomics approach, we investigate the occurrence, abundance, and diversity of Pythium spp. s.l. in 127 corn fields of 11 European countries from the years 2019 to 2021. We also identify 73 species, with up to 20 species in a single soil sample, and the prevalent species, which show high species diversity, varying disease potential, and are widespread in most countries. Further, we show species-species co-occurrence patterns considering all detected species and link species abundance to soil parameter using the LUCAS topsoil dataset. Infection experiments with recovered isolates show that Pythium s.l. differ in disease potential, and that effective interference with plant hormone networks suppressing JA (jasmonate)-mediated defenses is an essential component of the virulence mechanism of Pythium s.l. species. This study provides a valuable dataset that enables deep insights into the structure and species diversity of Pythium s.l. communities in European corn fields and knowledge for better understanding plant-Pythium interactions, facilitating the development of an effective strategy to cope with this pathogen.

Draft genome sequence of the marine Streptomyces sp. strain PP-C42, isolated from the Baltic Sea.

Streptomyces, a branch of aerobic Gram-positive bacteria, represents the largest genus of actinobacteria. The streptomycetes are characterized by a complex secondary metabolism and produce over two-thirds of the clinically used natural antibiotics today. Here we report the draft genome sequence of a Streptomyces strain, PP-C42, isolated from the marine environment. A subset of unique genes and gene clusters for diverse secondary metabolites as well as antimicrobial peptides could be identified from the genome, showing great promise as a source for novel bioactive compounds.

Genome sequence of Bacillus subtilis subsp. spizizenii gtP20b, isolated from the Indian ocean.

Bacillus subtilis is an aerobic spore-forming Gram-positive bacterium that is a model organism and of great industrial significance as the source of diverse novel functional molecules. Here we present, to our knowledge, the first genome sequence of Bacillus subtilis strain gtP20b isolated from the marine environment. A subset of candidate genes and gene clusters were identified, which are potentially involved in production of diverse functional molecules, like novel ribosomal and nonribosomal antimicrobial peptides. The genome sequence described in this paper is due to its high strain specificity of great importance for basic as well as applied researches on marine organisms.

Characterization of a male sterile related gene BcMF15 from Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis.

Data from cDNA-AFLP analysis based on the genome-wide transcriptional profiling on the flower buds of the male meiotic cytokinesis (mmc) mutant and its wild-type of Brassica campestris L. ssp. chinensis Makino, syn. B. rapa L. ssp. chinensis, indicated that mutation of the MMC gene resulted in changes in expression of a variety of genes. A transcript-derived fragment specifically accumulated in the wild-type flower buds was isolated, and the corresponding full-length cDNA and DNA was subsequently amplified. Bioinformatical analyses of this gene named BcMF15 (GenBank accession number EF600901) showed that it encoded a protein with 103 amino acids. The BcMF15 had a 88% nucleotide similarity to a lipid transfer protein-like gene. Moreover, sequence prediction indicated that BcMF15 might encode a membrane protein with a signal peptide at the N-terminus. Meanwhile, six domains were predicted in the deduced BcMF15 protein, such as the AAI domain existing in some crucial proteins of pollen development-preferential, signal peptide, transmembrane domain, vWF domain, ZnF_C4 domain, and Tryp_alpha_amyl domain. Spatial and temporal expression patterns analysis by RT-PCR indicated that BcMF15 was exclusively expressed in the fertile line, which indicated this gene is male sterile related. Phylogenetic analysis in Cruciferae revealed that the BcMF15 was relative conservative in evolution. We suppose BcMF15 may be a critical molecule in the transmembrane transportation and signal transduction during microspore development.

Suppression of abscisic acid biosynthesis at the early infection stage of Verticillium longisporum in oilseed rape (Brassica napus).

Verticillium longisporum infects oilseed rape (Brassica napus) and Arabidopsis thaliana. To investigate the early response of oilseed rape to the fungal infection, we determined transcriptomic changes in oilseed rape roots at 6 days post-inoculation (dpi) by RNA-Seq analysis, in which non-infected roots served as a control. Strikingly, a subset of genes involved in abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis was found to be down-regulated and the ABA level was accordingly attenuated in 6 dpi oilseed rape as compared with the control. Gene expression analysis revealed that this was mainly attributed to the suppression of BnNCED3-mediated ABA biosynthesis, involving, for example, BnWRKY57. However, this down-regulation of ABA biosynthesis could not be observed in infected Arabidopsis roots. Arabidopsis ABA- defective mutants nced3 and aao3 displayed pronounced tolerance to the fungal infection with delayed and impeded symptom development, even though fungal colonization was not affected in both mutants. These data suggest that ABA appears to be required for full susceptibility of Arabidopsis to the fungal infection. Furthermore, we found that in both 6 dpi oilseed rape and the Arabidopsis nced3 mutant, the salicylic acid (SA) signalling pathway was induced while the jasmonic acid (JA)/ethylene (ET) signalling pathway was concomitantly mitigated. Following these data, we conclude that in oilseed rape the V. longisporum infection triggers a host-specific suppression of the NCED3-mediated ABA biosynthesis, consequently increasing plant tolerance to the fungal infection. We believe that this might be part of the virulence strategy of V. longisporum to initiate/establish a long-lasting compatible interaction with oilseed rape (coexistence), which appears to be different from the infection process in Arabidopsis.

[Molecular cloning and characterization of BcMYBogu, a novel member of the MYB family involved in OguCMS in Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis].

In the attempt to elucidate the molecular mechanism of CMS. Ogura cytoplasmic male sterile (OguCMS) lines were obtained in Chinese cabbage after interspecific hybridization between Brassica. napus L. OguCMS and B. campestris ssp. chinensis followed by recurrent backcross with B. campestris ssp. chinensis as the pollen donor. The CMS lines were significantly characterized by the whitish anther and indehiscence of anther. The tapetal hypertrophy with excess vacuola-tion was the first observed defective soon after the tetrad stage, subsequently the microspores defected in pollen wall forma-tion, and later the cytoplasm detached from the exine wall and underwent degeneration. With aid of cDNA-AFLP and RACE approaches, we cloned the BcMYBogu(GenBank accession No: EF127861) in Chinese cabbage, which is premature expressed in early and middle stage floral buds of OguCMS lines, and predicted to encode a novel protein with a DNA binding domain: SH[AL]QKY[RF] motif at the N-terminus. Phylogenetic comparison revealed that the BcMYBogu was clustered with AtMYB32, AtMYB26 and AtMYB4, which were indicated to be involved in male sterility in Arabidopsis thaliana. The BcMYBogu transcript was detected in rosette leaves, floral buds and stems by RT-PCR analysis. Compared with the maintainer, the expression level of BcMYBogu was increased in these organs, especially in floral buds of OguCMS lines. Our investigation suggests that BcMYBogu is a new member of the MYB family involved in male sterility in Chinese cabbage.

[Cloning and Evolutionary Analysis of Homologous Sequences of CYP86MF Gene in Cruciferae.].

In order to direct the construction of plant germplasms by elucidating the relatives among plants at the level of gene, CYP86MF gene analogues from 11 species of 6 genera in Cuciferae were respectively obtained by PCR strategy using gene specific primers designed from conserved regions of CYP86MF gene reported. Sequence comparisonindicated that the similarities among the genes at nucleotide level were over 80%, and the similarities at amino acid level remained above 70%. The differences between the genes at nucleotide and amino acid level between species were 1.0% ~ 5.7% and 2.6% ~ 7.3% respectively, while those between genera 5.6% ~ 22.5% and 7.3% ~ 31.2%, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis showed that Brassica was closely related to Raphanus, followed by Rorippa Scop, Arabidopsis Heynh, Capsella Medic orderly, most distantly related to Orychophrogmus. It was concluded that CYP86MF gene was not applicable to specie and subspecie taxon but genus taxon because the differences of sequences in nucleotides and amino acids were lower between species than genera.