Changes in the Sclerotinia sclerotiorum transcriptome during infection of Brassica napus

Abstract

Background Sclerotinia sclerotiorum causes stem rot in Brassica napus, which leads to lodging and severe yield losses. Although recent studies have explored significant progress in the characterization of individual S. sclerotiorum pathogenicity factors, a gap exists in profiling gene expression throughout the course of S. sclerotiorum infection on a host plant. In this study, RNA-Seq analysis was performed with focus on the events occurring through the early (1 h) to the middle (48 h) stages of infection.ResultsTranscript analysis revealed the temporal pattern and amplitude of the deployment of genes associated with aspects of pathogenicity or virulence during the course of S. sclerotiorum infection on Brassica napus. These genes were categorized into eight functional groups: hydrolytic enzymes, secondary metabolites, detoxification, signaling, development, secreted effectors, oxalic acid and reactive oxygen species production. The induction patterns of nearly all of these genes agreed with their predicted functions. Principal component analysis delineated gene expression patterns that signified transitions between pathogenic phases, namely host penetration, ramification and necrotic stages, and provided evidence for the occurrence of a brief biotrophic phase soon after host penetration.ConclusionsThe current observations support the notion that S. sclerotiorum deploys an array of factors and complex strategies to facilitate host colonization and mitigate host defenses. This investigation provides a broad overview of the sequential expression of virulence/pathogenicity-associated genes during infection of B. napus by S. sclerotiorum and provides information for further characterization of genes involved in the S. sclerotiorum-host plant interactions.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-017-3642-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Selective sweeps in populations of the broad host range plant pathogenic fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum

“…To determine whether genes associated with selective sweeps exhibited expression 261 profiles consistent with a role in plant infection, an RNA sequencing time course was 262 analysed. The RNA sequencing (RNASeq) data used in this study have been published 263 previously (23,54). In Derbyshire et al (23), these data were analysed in relation to the 264 version two gene sequences for S. sclerotiorum, though only expression data for predicted 265 effectors were presented.…”

Resistance against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum in soybean involves a reprogramming of the phenylpropanoid pathway and up‐regulation of antifungal activity targeting ergosterol biosynthesis

“…The application of RNAseq approaches in soybean-S. sclerotiorum interaction studies will, most assuredly, contribute to the development of molecular genetic resources crucial for mechanistic and translational research. Transcriptomics were used to study the interaction of S. sclerotiorum with non-model plant hosts, including soybean (Calla et al, 2009(Calla et al, , 2014, canola (Girard et al, 2017;Joshi et al, 2016;Seifbarghi et al, 2017), pea (Zhuang et al, 2012) and common bean (Oliveira et al, 2015). While informative, these studies were solely based on gene expression comparisons, and thus may not provide a complete picture of the flow of biologic information.…”

Exploring the genetics of lesion and nodal resistance in pea (Pisum sativum L.) to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum using genome‐wide association studies and RNA‐Seq

“…Transcriptomics and differential expression (DE) analysis using RNA‐Seq have become a standard approach to identifying resistance genes for white mold, and studies have applied this approach to oilseed rape ( Brassica napus ) and pea (Girard et al., ; Seifbarghi et al., ; Zhuang, McPhee, Coram, Peever, & Chilvers, ). While most of these studies focused on the expression comparisons between a resistant and a susceptible variety, the genetic diversity of white mold resistance in B. napus might be underestimated using only this approach.…”

“…Transcriptomics and differential expression (DE) analysis using RNA-Seq have become a standard approach to identifying resistance genes for white mold, and studies have applied this approach to oilseed rape (Brassica napus) and pea (Girard et al, 2017;Seifbarghi et al, 2017;Zhuang, McPhee, Coram, Peever, & Chilvers, 2012).…”