ABSTRACT
Background Upon exposure to unfavorable environmental conditions, plants need to respond quickly to maintain their homeostasis. For instance, physiological, biochemical and transcriptomical changes must occur during interactions with pathogens, this causing the triggering of pathogen- and plant-derived molecules. In the case of Vanilla planifolia Jacks., a worldwide economically important crop, it is susceptible to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vanillae. This pathogen causes root and stem rot in vanilla plants that finally leads to plant death. To further investigate how vanilla plants respond at the transcriptional level upon infection with F.oxysporum f. sp. vanillae, we employed the RNA-Seq approach to analyze the dynamics of whole-transcriptome changes during two-time frames of the infection.
Results Analysis of global gene expression profiles indicated that a major transcriptional change occurs at 2 dpi, in comparison to 10 dpi, whereas 3420 genes were found with a differential expression at 2 dpi, only 839 were identified at 10 dpi. The analysis of the transcriptional profile at 2 dpi suggests that vanilla plants prepare to counter the infection by gathering a pool of translational regulation-related transcripts.
Conclusions We propose that the plant-pathogen interaction at early stages causes a transcriptional reprogramming coupled with a translational regulation. Altogether, this study provides the identification of molecular players that could help to fight the most damaging disease of vanilla, where ribosomal proteins and regulation of the translational mechanism are critical. These are insights into the defense responses of V. planifolia Jacks., providing the basis for the understanding of the plant early response towards biotic stress.
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
- PAMPs
- Pathogen-Associated Molecular Patterns.
- RNA-Seq
- (high-throughput) sequencing of RNA.
- PTI
- PAMP-Triggered Immunity;
- ETI
- Effector-Triggered Immunity
- PRRs
- Plant Pattern Recognition Receptors
- MAPKs
- Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases
- HR
- Hypersensitive Response
- 2 dpi
- 2 days after inoculation
- 10 dpi
- 10 days after inoculation
- DEG
- Differentially Expressed Genes
- RP
- Ribosomal Protein
- RPS
- Small Subunit Ribosomal Protein
- RPL
- Large Subunit Ribosomal Protein
- YDA
- YODA
- SMT1
- STEROL METHYLTRANSFERASE 1
- emb2386
- embryo defective 2386
- IPP2
- ISOPENTENYL PYROPHOSPHATE DIMETHYLALLYL PYROPHOSPHATE ISOMERASE 2
- MEE22
- MATERNAL EFFECT EMBRYO ARREST 22
- GP ALPHA 1
- G PROTEIN ALPHA SUBUNIT 1
- emb2171
- embryo defective 2171
- BIG
- Binding / ubiquitin-protein ligase / zinc ion binding Calossin-like protein required for polar auxin transport BIG
- HPA1
- HISTIDINOL PHOSPHATE AMINOTRANSFERASE 1
- NS1
- asparagine-tRNA ligase Asparaginyl-tRNA synthetase protein
- TAG1
- TRIACYLGLYCEROL BIOSYNTHESIS DEFECT 1
- LZF1
- LIGHT-REGULATED ZINC FINGER PROTEIN 1
- STV1
- SHORT VALVE1
- MEE14
- maternal effect embryo arrest 14; maternal effect embryo arrest 14 (MEE14)
- SPT1
- SERINE PALMITOYLTRANSFERASE 1
- TCTP
- TRANSLATIONALLY CONTROLLED TUMOR PROTEIN
- TCH2
- TOUCH 2
- eiFs
- Eukaryotic Initiation Factors
- CGN
- GENERAL CONTROL NONDEREPRESSIBLE
- logFC
- log2 of fold change
- MAPK
- Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases