Department of Plant Pathology and Crop Physiology, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.
Toxins (Basel). 2011 Jul;3(7):766-86. doi: 10.3390/toxins3070766. Epub 2011 Jun 29.
Aflatoxin contamination caused by the opportunistic pathogen A. flavus is a major concern in maize production prior to harvest and through storage. Previous studies have highlighted the constitutive production of proteins involved in maize kernel resistance against A. flavus' infection. However, little is known about induced resistance nor about defense gene expression and regulation in kernels. In this study, maize oligonucleotide arrays and a pair of closely-related maize lines varying in aflatoxin accumulation were used to reveal the gene expression network in imbibed mature kernels in response to A. flavus' challenge. Inoculated kernels were incubated 72 h via the laboratory-based Kernel Screening Assay (KSA), which highlights kernel responses to fungal challenge. Gene expression profiling detected 6955 genes in resistant and 6565 genes in susceptible controls; 214 genes induced in resistant and 2159 genes induced in susceptible inoculated kernels. Defense related and regulation related genes were identified in both treatments. Comparisons between the resistant and susceptible lines indicate differences in the gene expression network which may enhance our understanding of the maize-A. flavus interaction.
黄曲霉污染是收获前和储存过程中玉米生产的主要问题，机会性病原体黄曲霉会导致这一污染。先前的研究强调了参与玉米抵抗黄曲霉感染的蛋白质的组成型生产。然而，人们对诱导抗性以及玉米颗粒中的防御基因表达和调控知之甚少。在这项研究中，使用玉米寡核苷酸阵列和一对在黄曲霉毒素积累方面差异很小的密切相关的玉米品系，揭示了在吸水成熟玉米颗粒中对黄曲霉挑战的基因表达网络。通过基于实验室的 Kernel Screening Assay（KSA）对接种的玉米颗粒进行 72 小时孵育，突出了玉米颗粒对真菌挑战的反应。基因表达谱在抗性品系中检测到 6955 个基因，在易感对照中检测到 6565 个基因；在抗性接种的玉米颗粒中诱导了 214 个基因，在易感接种的玉米颗粒中诱导了 2159 个基因。在两种处理中都鉴定出了防御相关和调控相关基因。抗性和易感系之间的比较表明，基因表达网络存在差异，这可能有助于我们更好地理解玉米-黄曲霉相互作用。
