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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Salinas, California » Crop Improvement and Protection Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #380293
Research Project: Management of Pathogens for Strawberry and Vegetable Production Systems

Location: Crop Improvement and Protection Research

Title: Key insights and research prospects at the dawn of the population genomics era for Verticillium dahliae

Author
item CHEN, JIE-YIN - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences
item Klosterman, Steven
item HU, XIAO-PING - Northwest Agricultural & Forestry University
item DAI, XIAO-FENG - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences
item SUBBARAO, KRISHNA - University Of California

Submitted to: Annual Review of Phytopathology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/21/2021
Publication Date: 4/23/2021
Citation: Chen, J.-Y., Klosterman, S.J., Hu, X.-P., Dai, X.-F., Subbarao, K.V. 2021. Key insights and research prospects at the dawn of the population genomics era for Verticillium dahliae. Annual Review of Phytopathology. 59. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-phyto-020620-121925.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-phyto-020620-121925

Interpretive Summary: Verticillium dahliae is a cosmopolitan soilborne fungus that causes Verticillium wilt disease on numerous crop species. The genetic basis for characteristic features of morphology and pathogenicity that differ between some strains and closely related species are being uncovered with the advent of newer technologies and reduced DNA sequencing costs that have enabled population genomics. This article characterizes recent comparative genomics analyses between multiple strains of V. dahliae and related species that have helped to uncover the genetic basis for differences in pathogenicity between them. We discuss future approaches for conducting population genomics to decipher genomic DNA sequences that underlie differences within and between populations of V. dahliae and related species. These insights will provide new diagnostic tools and knowledge that will facilitate the development of plants with Verticillium wilt resistance.

Technical Abstract: The genomics era has ushered in exciting possibilities to examine the genetic bases that undergird the characteristic features of Verticillium dahliae and other plant pathogens. In this review, we provide historical perspectives on some of the salient biological characteristics of V. dahliae, including its morphology, microsclerotia formation, host range, disease symptoms, vascular niche, reproduction, and population structure. The kaleidoscopic population structure of this pathogen is summarized, including different races of the pathogen, defoliating and nondefoliating phenotypes, vegetative compatibility groupings, and clonal populations. Where possible, we place the characteristic differences in the context of comparative and functional genomics analyses that have offered in-sights into population divergence within V. dahliae and the related species.