Progress in the Study of False Smut Disease in Rice

Rice false smut disease is an increasing concern for research and production, not only because of the increasing epidemic occurrence in rice production, but also the intriguing specific pathogenesis of the disease to be a unique pathological system to enrich the molecular mechanism of plant-microbe interaction. Progresses have been achieved in the pathogen phylogenetic placement, the alternative hosts, the pathogen morphology and diversity, the toxins generated by false smut balls, the artificial inoculation method, and the pathogen transformation as well as rice resistance to the disease. However, it is still controversy on the infection process. It is not clear how the life cycle of this pathogen is coupled with the disease cycle. This review summarized our current understanding on the pathogen, the pathogenesis, and the rice resistance to the disease. Future work should pay attention to developing a more rapid and effective system to evaluate rice resistance and susceptibility to the disease, screening of rice germplasm for disease-resistance breeding, studying the resistance inheritance, and investigating the molecular mechanism of rice-false smut fungus interaction.

Occurrence of Major Diseases and Insect Pests in Medium-term Growth Period of Sugarcane and The Diseases Resistance Evaluation in Guangxi

To figure out major diseases and insect pests of sugarcane and sugarcane resistance to diseases,the occurrence of major diseases and insect pests on 11 main sugarcane varieties in eight sugarcane producing areas of Guangxi was investigated during the medium-term growth period of sugarcane in 2015,and field resistance to smut and mosaic diseases was evaluated. The results showed that the dead heart rate（ DHR） ranged from 0. 00% to 38. 55%; new-planting sugarcane of Guiliu 2 and ratoon sugarcane of Liucheng 05-136 suffered the most severe damage in Beihai city,and the DHR were 38. 55% and 37. 66%,respectively. The incidence rate of smut disease ranged from 0. 00% to 24. 89%. Ratoon sugarcane was more susceptible to smut than new-planting sugarcane among all investigated varieties. Variety ROC22 was most susceptible to smut,and performed moderate susceptibility. Guiliu 2 was the second susceptible and performed resistance,with the incidence rate of 7. 45%. The rest nine varieties had high resistance. Sugarcane mosaic disease occurred mildly in Guangxi,and the incidence rate ranged from 0. 39% to 7. 73%. ROC22,Guitang 42 and Guiliu 2 expressed moderate resistance and the rests exhibited resistance. Sugarcane in Nanning and Beihai suffered more severe damage than those in other producing areas. The field evaluation system of sugarcane resistance to borers was expected to be constructed. ROC22 was most susceptible to smut,compared with other main varieties. Mosaic diseases occurred lightly in Guangxi. Multi-location and multi-year observation are necessary for accurate evaluation of sugarcane resistance to smut and mosaic diseases.

Putative Phosphatase UvPsr1 Is Required for Mycelial Growth, Conidiation, Stress Response and Pathogenicity in Ustilaginonidea virens

Ustilaginoidea virens is the causal agent of rice false smut,which can be a highly destructive disease of rice.The plasma membrane phosphatase Psr1 proteins,which act as a regulator of the salinity stress response in yeast,are widely distributed across fungi,but their functional characterization is sketchy.In this study,we characterized the functions of Psr1 protein,UvPsr1,in U.virens.Analyses of the AUvpsr1 and its complementation strain showed that UvPsr1 is required for normal mycelial growth,conidiation and tolerance to oxidative,osmotic and cell wall stresses.When rice panicles were inoculated with the AUvpsr1 strains,no symptoms of false smut disease developed,showing that UvPSR1 also contributes to the pathogenicity of the fungus.The deletion mutant of UvPSR1 also appeared to produce a smaller titer of toxic compounds able to inhibit elongation of the germinated seeds.In conclusion,our results indicated that UvPsr1 is a new pathogenic factor of U.virens.

A maize WAK-SnRK1a2-WRKY module regulates nutrient availability to defend against head smut disease

Obligate biotrophs depend on living hosts for nutrient acquisition to complete their life cycle,yet the mechanisms by which hosts restrict nutrient availability to pathogens remain largely unknown.The fungal pathogen Sporisorium reilianum infects maize seedlings and causes head smut disease in inflorescences at maturity,while a cell wall-associated kinase,ZmWAK,provides quantitative resistance against it.In this study,we demonstrate that S.reilianum can rapidly activate ZmWAK kinase activity,which is sustained by the 407th threonine residue in the juxtamembrane domain,enabling it to interact with and phosphorylate ZmSnRK1a2,a conserved sucrose non-fermenting-related kinase a subunit.The activated ZmSnRK1a2 translocates from the cytoplasm to the nucleus,where it phosphorylates and destabilizes the transcription factor ZmWRKY53.The reduced ZmWRKY53 abundance leads to the downregulation of genes involved in transmembrane transport and carbohydrate metabolism,resulting in nutrient starvation for S.reilianum in the apoplast.Collectively,our study uncovers a WAK-SnRK1a2-WRKY53 signaling module in maize that conveys phosphorylation cascades from the plasma membrane to the nucleus to confer plant resistance against head smut in maize,offering new insights and potential targets for crop disease management.