Understanding the Dynamics of Blast Resistance in Rice-Magnaporthe oryzae Interactions

Abstract

Rice is a global food grain crop for more than one-third of the human population and a source for food and nutritional security. Rice production is subjected to various stresses; blast disease caused by Magnaporthe oryzae is one of the major biotic stresses that has the potential to destroy total crop under severe conditions. In the present review, we discuss the importance of rice and blast disease in the present and future global context, genomics and molecular biology of blast pathogen and rice, and the molecular interplay between rice–M. oryzae interaction governed by different gene interaction models. We also elaborated in detail on M. oryzae effector and Avr genes, and the role of noncoding RNAs in disease development. Further, rice blast resistance QTLs; resistance (R) genes; and alleles identified, cloned, and characterized are discussed. We also discuss the utilization of QTLs and R genes for blast resistance through conventional breeding and transgenic approaches. Finally, we review the demonstrated examples and potential applications of the latest genome-editing tools in understanding and managing blast disease in rice.

The First Telomere-to-Telomere Chromosome-Level Genome Assembly of Stagonospora tainanensis Causing Sugarcane Leaf Blight

“…In total, 12,206 high-confidence protein-coding genes were predicted by the BRAKER2 pipeline, which was more than the Magnaporthe grisea PMg_Dl (10,218) though its genome size (38.25 Mb) was less than the M. grisea (47.89 Mb) [ 69 ], and this phenomenon was also observed in the other necrotrophic fungal pathogen Pyrenophora teres f. teres (41.95 Mb size, 11,799 genes) [ 70 ] and L. maculans ‘brassicae’ WA74 (44.20 Mb size, 10,624 genes) [ 71 ]. However, the gene number and the genome size of S. tainanensis were comparable to M. oryzae (on average 12,684 genes, 40.12 Mb size) [ 72 ]. In addition, this number is less than the other species in the same genus Stagonospora , i.e., model species S. nodorum SN15 (37.02 Mb size, 17,580 genes) ( ) (accessed on 30 August 2022), substantially higher than the known filamentous fungi though the gene number changed from first 10,792 supported by EST [ 35 ] to 12,382 supported by integrated multidimensional omics [ 73 ] and now 17,580 [ 74 ], while the gene number was comparable to the other typical species in filamentous fungi.…”

Marker-Assisted Pyramiding of Blast-Resistance Genes in a japonica Elite Rice Cultivar through Forward and Background Selection

“…Although treated with fungicides during the growing season, Vialone Nano often suffers a serious yield penalty when exposed to moderate pathogen pressure, making the sustainability of this cultivation very uncertain. The introduction of multiple Pi genes effective against field-blast population [ 7 , 60 ] will most likely allow relief from or solution of the problems related to blast incidence in this rice variety.…”

Transcriptomic Dynamics of Active and Inactive States of Rho GTPase MoRho3 in Magnaporthe oryzae

“…Blast disease caused by M. oryzae is one of the most devastating diseases on food crops such as rice, barley, millet, and most recently, wheat [ 40 , 41 , 42 ]. The rice blast fungus completes the infection cycle via a specialized cell called an appressorium at the penetration site [ 43 ].…”