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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Kimberly, Idaho » Northwest Irrigation and Soils Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #400333
Research Project: Development of Elite Sugar Beet Germplasm Enhanced for Disease Resistance and Novel Disease Management Options for Improved Yield

Location: Northwest Irrigation and Soils Research

Title: Host plant resistance mechanisms against fungal pathogens

Author
item Majumdar, Raj
item Rajasekaran, Kanniah - Rajah
item Vaughan, Martha
item OZIAS-AKINS, PEGGY - University Of Georgia

Submitted to: Frontiers in Plant Science
Publication Type: Other
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/1/2022
Publication Date: 12/7/2022
Citation: Majumdar, R., Rajasekaran, K., Vaughan, M.M., Ozias-Akins, P. 2022. Host plant resistance mechanisms against fungal pathogens. Frontiers in Plant Science. 13:1103046. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.20221103046.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389//fpls.2022.1103046

Interpretive Summary: Among different disease-causing agents in plants, fungal pathogens are responsible for the most yield loses in crop plants. Plants deploy different mechanisms to combat fungal pathogens thereby contributing to resistance and/or susceptibility. This special issue highlights such mechanisms in different crop species and holds future potential to enhance host plant resistance against fungi.

Technical Abstract: Crop plants are constantly exposed to diverse biotic stressors during their lifetime. Fungal pathogens represent a predominant biotic stress of crops and account for 80-85% of known diseases leading to significant yield losses. Host plant resistance against fungal pathogens is due to diverse factors such as plant genetic background, physiological status, agroecological, and environmental conditions. In addition, the microbiome associated with host plants has also been shown to contribute to resistance by producing metabolites that modulate host plant defense pathways or exhibit antimicrobial properties. The advancement in next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology for genome/RNA sequencing and modern omic approaches such as proteomics, metabolomics, and interactomics have profusely helped to define host plant resistance mechanisms. These technological advances have made possible introgression of resistance traits into agronomically important varieties by traditional or molecular breeding. Recently, the application of highly sophisticated biotechnological tools using RNAi or CRISPR-Cas9-based gene editing has enabled us to precisely manipulate the integration and expression of key genes for enhanced host resistance. This special issue compiles articles that highlight mechanisms underlying host plant-fungal interactions that govern susceptibility or resistance to fungal pathogens including Botrytis, Colletotrichum, and Fusarium.