CRISPR/CasRx-mediated resistance to Soybean mosaic virus in soybean

Soybean mosaic virus(SMV),an RNA virus,is the most common and destructive pathogenic virus in soybean fields.The newly developed CRISPR/Cas immune system has provided a novel strategy for improving plant resistance to viruses;hence,this study aimed to engineer SMV resistance in soybean using this system.Specifically,multiple sgRNAs were designed to target positive-and/or negative-sense strands of the SMV HC-Pro gene.Subsequently,the corresponding CRISPR/CasRx vectors were constructed and transformed into soybeans.After inoculation with SMV,39.02%,35.77%,and 18.70%of T_(1)plants were confirmed to be highly resistant(HR),resistant(R),and mildly resistant(MR)to SMV,respectively,whereas only 6.50%were identified as susceptible(S).Additionally,qRT-PCR and DAS-ELISA showed that,both at 15 and 30 d post-inoculation(dpi),SMV accumulation significantly decreased or was even undetectable in HR and R plants,followed by MR and S plants.Additionally,the expression level of the CasRx gene varied in almost all T_(1)plants with different resistance level,both at 15 and 30 dpi.Furthermore,when SMV resistance was evaluated in the T_(2)generation,the results were similar to those recorded for the T_(1)generation.These findings provide new insights into the application of the CRISPR/CasRx system for soybean improvement and offer a promising alternative strategy for breeding for resistance to biotic stress that will contribute to the development of SMV-immune soybean germplasm to accelerate progress towards greater soybean crop productivity.

Searching for plant NLR immune receptors conferring resistance to potyviruses

To fight against invasion by pathogens,plants have evolved an elaborate innate immune system,of which the nucleotide-binding domain leucine-rich repeat-containing receptor(NLR)acts as the sensor and immune executor.Potyviruses,comprising one of the largest genera of plant viruses,cause severe crop yield losses worldwide.Inherited crop resistance to potyviruses can be used in breeding and plant transgenesis to control disease development.This review summarizes achievements in mapping and cloning NLR genes conferring dominant resistance against potyvirus in the families Fabaceae,Solanaceae,Brassicaceae,and Cucurbitaceae.It compares mechanisms of potyviral protein recognition and downstream signaling employed by NLRs and discusses strategies for exploiting NLRs to better control diseases caused by potyviruses.

A MADS-box gene is involved in soybean resistance to multiple Soybean mosaic virus strains

Soybean mosaic virus(SMV)is a member of the genus Potyvirus that extensively impairs global soybean production.The full-length coding sequence of the MADS-box transcription factor Gm CAL was cloned from the SMV-resistant soybean cultivar Kefeng 1.SMV-induced expression analysis indicated that Gm CAL responded quickly to SMV-SC8 infection in Kefeng 1 but not in NN1138-2.Gm CAL was expressed at high levels in flowers and pods but at lower levels in leaves.The gene was localized to the nucleus by subcellular localization assay.Virus-induced gene silencing did not increase the accumulation of SMV in Gm CAL-silenced Kefeng 1 plants(with silencing efficiency~80%)after SC8 inoculation.Gm CAL-silencing plants still conferred resistance to SC8 that might be owing to incomplete silencing of genes with lower expression.SMV content decreased significantly in Gm CAL-overexpressing NN1138-2 plants after SMVSC3,SMV-SC7,and SMV-SC8 inoculation in comparison with a vector control,showing that overexpression of Gm CAL conferred broad-spectrum resistance to multiple SMV strains.These results confirm that Gm CAL,a key regulator but not a specific SC8 resistance gene(Rsc8),is a positive regulatory transcription factor involved in soybean resistance to SMV.

The soybean GmPUB21-interacting protein GmDi19-5 responds to drought and salinity stresses via an ABA-dependent pathway

Drought-induced protein 19(Di19) is a Cys2/His2 zinc-finger protein that functions in plant growth and development and in tolerance to abiotic stresses.Gm PUB21,an E3 ubiquitin ligase,negatively regulates drought and salinity response in soybean.We identified potential interaction target proteins of Gm PUB21by yeast two-hybrid c DNA library screening,Gm Di19-5 as a candidate.Bimolecular fluorescence complementation and glutathionine-S-transferase pull-down assays confirmed the interaction between Gm Di19-5 and Gm PUB21.Gm Di19-5 was induced by Na Cl,drought,and abscisic acid(ABA) treatments.Gm Di19-5 was expressed in the cytoplasm and nucleus.Gm Di19-5 overexpression conferred hypersensitivity to drought and high salinity,whereas Gm Di19-5 silencing increased drought and salinity tolerance.Transcripts of ABA-and stress response-associated genes including Gm RAB18 and Gm DREB2A were downregulated in Gm Di19-5-overexpressing plants under drought and salinity stresses.ABA decreased the protein level of Gm Di19-5 in vivo,whereas Gm PUB21 increased the decrease of Gm Di19-5 after exogenous ABA application.The accumulation of Gm PUB21 was also inhibited by Gm Di19-5.We conclude that Gm PUB21 and Gm Di19-5 collaborate to regulate drought and salinity tolerance via an ABA-dependent pathway.

A cell wall-localized NLR confers resistance to Soybean mosaic virus by recognizing viral-encoded cylindrical inclusion protein.

Soybean mosaic virus (SMV) causes severe yield losses and seed quality reduction in soybean (Glycine max) production worldwide. Rsc4 from cultivar Dabaima is a dominant genetic locus for SMV resistance, and its mapping interval contains three Nucleotide-binding domain Leucine-rich Repeat containing (NLR) candidates (Rsc4-1, Rsc4-2, and Rsc4-3). The NLR-type resistant proteins were considered as important intracellular pathogen sensors in the previous studies. In this research, based on transient expression assay in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves, we found that the longest transcript of Rsc4-3 is sufficient to induce resistance response to SMV;and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated Rsc4-3 knockout in resistant cultivar Dabaima compromised the resistance. These indicate that Rsc4-3 confers resistance to SMV. Interestingly, Rsc4-3 encodes a cell wall localized NLR-type resistant protein (Rsc4-3). The internal polypeptide region responsible for apoplastic targeting of Rsc4-3 and the putative palmitoylation sites on the N-terminus are essential for the resistance response. Furthermore, we showed that viral-encoded cylindrical inclusion (CI) protein partially localizes to the cell wall and can interact with Rsc4-3. Virus-driven or transient expression of CI protein of avirulent SMV strains is enough to induce resistance response in the presence of Rsc4-3, suggesting that CI is the avirulent gene for Rsc4-3 mediated resistance. Our work exhibited a case of NLR recognizing virus in the apoplast and provided a simple and effective method for identifying resistant genes against SMV infection.

R_(SC3)K of soybean cv. Kefeng No.1 confers resistance to soybean mosaic virus by interacting with the viral protein P3

Soybean mosaic virus(SMV) is one of the most devastating viral pathogens of soybean(Glycine max(L.) Merr). In total, 22 Chinese SMV strains(SC1–SC22) have been classified based on the responses of 10 soybean cultivars to these pathogens. However, although several SMVresistance loci in soybean have been identified, no gene conferring SMV resistance in the resistant soybean cultivar(cv.) Kefeng No.1 has been cloned and verified. Here, using F_(2)-derived F_(3)(F_(2:3)) and recombinant inbred line(RIL) populations from a cross between Kefeng No.1 and susceptible soybean cv. Nannong 1138-2, we localized the gene in Kefeng No.1 that mediated resistance to SMV-SC3 strain to a 90-kb interval on chromosome 2. To study the functions of candidate genes in this interval, we performed Bean pod mottle virus(BPMV)-induced gene silencing(VIGS). We identified a recombinant gene(which we named R_(SC3)K) harboring an internal deletion of a genomic DNA fragment partially flanking the LOC100526921 and LOC100812666 reference genes as the SMV-SC3 resistance gene.By shuffling genes between infectious SMV DNA clones based on the avirulent isolate SC3 and virulent isolate 1129, we determined that the viral protein P3 is the avirulence determinant mediating SMV-SC3 resistance on Kefeng No.1. P3 interacts with RNase proteins encoded by R_(SC3)K, LOC100526921, and LOC100812666. The recombinant R_(SC3)K conveys much higher anti-SMV activity than LOC100526921 and LOC100812666, although those two genes also encode proteins that inhibit SMV accumulation, as revealed by gene silencing in a susceptible cultivar and by overexpression in Nicotiana benthamiana. These findings demonstrate that R_(SC3)K mediates the resistance of Kefeng No.1 to SMV-SC3 and that SMV resistance of soybean is determined by the antiviral activity of RNase proteins.

A prolific and robust whole-genome genotyping method using PCR amplification via primer-template mismatched annealing

Whole-genome genotyping methods are important for breeding.However,it has been challenging to develop a robust method for simultaneous foreground and background genotyping that can easily be adapted to different genes and species.In our study,we accidently discovered that in adapter ligation-mediated PCR,the amplification by primertemplate mismatched annealing(PTMA)along the genome could generate thousands of stable PCR products.Based on this observation,we consequently developed a novel method for simultaneous foreground and background integrated genotyping by sequencing(FBI-seq)using one specific primer,in which foreground genotyping is performed by primer-template perfect annealing(PTPA),while background genotyping employs PTMA.Unlike DNA arrays,multiple PCR,or genome target enrichments,FBI-seq requires little preliminary work for primer design and synthesis,and it is easily adaptable to different foreground genes and species.FBI-seq therefore provides a prolific,robust,and accurate method for simultaneous foreground and background genotyping to facilitate breeding in the postgenomics era.