Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization (MOE) and Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China; School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China.
School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China.
Plant Commun. 2023 Sep 11;4(5):100608. doi: 10.1016/j.xplc.2023.100608. Epub 2023 Apr 25.
Reducing losses caused by pathogens is an effective strategy for stabilizing crop yields. Daunting challenges remain in cloning and characterizing genes that inhibit stripe rust, a devastating disease of wheat (Triticum aestivum) caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst). We found that suppression of wheat zeaxanthin epoxidase 1 (ZEP1) increased wheat defense against Pst. We isolated the yellow rust slower 1 (yrs1) mutant of tetraploid wheat in which a premature stop mutation in ZEP1-B underpins the phenotype. Genetic analyses revealed increased HO accumulation in zep1 mutants and demonstrated a correlation between ZEP1 dysfunction and slower Pst growth in wheat. Moreover, wheat kinase START 1.1 (WKS1.1, Yr36) bound, phosphorylated, and suppressed the biochemical activity of ZEP1. A rare natural allele in the hexaploid wheat ZEP1-B promoter reduced its transcription and Pst growth. Our study thus identified a novel suppressor of Pst, characterized its mechanism of action, and revealed beneficial variants for wheat disease control. This work opens the door to stacking wheat ZEP1 variants with other known Pst resistance genes in future breeding programs to enhance wheat tolerance to pathogens.
减少病原体造成的损失是稳定作物产量的有效策略。克隆和鉴定抑制条锈病（由条形柄锈菌引起的小麦毁灭性病害）的基因仍然面临巨大挑战。我们发现，抑制小麦玉米黄质环氧化酶 1（ZEP1）可增强小麦对 Pst 的防御能力。我们分离出四倍体小麦的黄矮病慢化 1（yrs1）突变体，其 ZEP1-B 中的提前终止突变导致该表型。遗传分析显示，zep1 突变体中 HO 积累增加，并证明 ZEP1 功能障碍与小麦中 Pst 生长缓慢之间存在相关性。此外，小麦激酶 START 1.1（WKS1.1，Yr36）结合、磷酸化并抑制 ZEP1 的生化活性。六倍体小麦 ZEP1-B 启动子中的一个罕见自然等位基因降低了其转录和 Pst 生长。因此，我们的研究鉴定了一种新的 Pst 抑制剂，阐明了其作用机制，并揭示了对小麦病害控制有益的变体。这项工作为未来的育种计划中与其他已知的 Pst 抗性基因一起堆叠小麦 ZEP1 变体打开了大门，以增强小麦对病原体的耐受性。
