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Wu Y, Li X, Dong L, Liu T, Tang Z, Lin R, Norvienyeku J, Xing M. A New Insight into 6-Pentyl-2H-pyran-2-one against Peronophythora litchii via TOR Pathway. J Fungi (Basel) 2023; 9:863. [PMID: 37623635 PMCID: PMC10515317 DOI: 10.3390/jof9080863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2023] [Revised: 08/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The litchi downy blight disease of litchi caused by Peronophythora litchii accounts for severe losses in the field and during storage. While ample quantitative studies have shown that 6-pentyl-2H-pyran-2-one (6PP) possesses antifungal activities against multiple plant pathogenic fungi, the regulatory mechanisms of 6PP-mediated inhibition of fungal pathogenesis and growth are still unknown. Here, we investigated the potential molecular targets of 6PP in the phytopathogenic oomycetes P. litchii through integrated deployment of RNA-sequencing, functional genetics, and biochemical techniques to investigate the regulatory effects of 6PP against P. litchii. Previously we demonstrated that 6PP exerted significant oomyticidal activities. Also, comparative transcriptomic evaluation of P. litchii strains treated with 6PP Revealed significant up-regulations in the expression profile of TOR pathway-related genes, including PlCytochrome C and the transcription factors PlYY1. We also noticed that 6PP treatment down-regulated putative negative regulatory genes of the TOR pathway, including PlSpm1 and PlrhoH12 in P. litchii. Protein-ligand binding analyses revealed stable affinities between PlYY1, PlCytochrome C, PlSpm1, PlrhoH12 proteins, and the 6PP ligand. Phenotypic characterization of PlYY1 targeted gene deletion strains generated in this study using CRISPR/Cas9 and homologous recombination strategies significantly reduced the vegetative growth, sporangium, encystment, zoospore release, and pathogenicity of P. litchii. These findings suggest that 6PP-mediated activation of PlYY1 expression positively regulates TOR-related responses and significantly influences vegetative growth and the virulence of P. litchii. The current investigations revealed novel targets for 6PP and underscored the potential of deploying 6PP in developing management strategies for controlling the litchi downy blight pathogen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yinggu Wu
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
| | - Xinyu Li
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
| | - Li Dong
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
| | - Tong Liu
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
| | - Zhengbin Tang
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
| | - Runmao Lin
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
| | - Justice Norvienyeku
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
| | - Mengyu Xing
- Key Laboratory of Green Prevention and Control of Tropical Diseases and Pests, Ministry of Education, School of Tropical Agriculture and Forestry, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, China; (Y.W.); (X.L.); (L.D.); (T.L.); (Z.T.); (R.L.)
- Sanya Nanfan Research Institute, Hainan University, Sanya 572025, China
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The SsAtg1 Activating Autophagy Is Required for Sclerotia Formation and Pathogenicity in Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. J Fungi (Basel) 2022; 8:jof8121314. [PMID: 36547647 PMCID: PMC9787769 DOI: 10.3390/jof8121314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2022] [Revised: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a necrotrophic phytopathogenic fungus that produces sclerotia. Sclerotia are essential components of the survival and disease cycle of this devastating pathogen. In this study, we analyzed comparative transcriptomics of hyphae and sclerotia. A total of 1959 differentially expressed genes, 919 down-regulated and 1040 up-regulated, were identified. Transcriptomes data provide the possibility to precisely comprehend the sclerotia development. We further analyzed the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in sclerotia to explore the molecular mechanism of sclerotia development, which include ribosome biogenesis and translation, melanin biosynthesis, autophagy and reactivate oxygen metabolism. Among these, the autophagy-related gene SsAtg1 was up-regulated in sclerotia. Atg1 homologs play critical roles in autophagy, a ubiquitous and evolutionarily highly conserved cellular mechanism for turnover of intracellular materials in eukaryotes. Therefore, we investigated the function of SsAtg1 to explore the function of the autophagy pathway in S. sclerotiorum. Deficiency of SsAtg1 inhibited autophagosome accumulation in the vacuoles of nitrogen-starved cells. Notably, ΔSsAtg1 was unable to form sclerotia and displayed defects in vegetative growth under conditions of nutrient restriction. Furthermore, the development and penetration of the compound appressoria in ΔSsAtg1 was abnormal. Pathogenicity analysis showed that SsAtg1 was required for full virulence of S. sclerotiorum. Taken together, these results indicate that SsAtg1 is a core autophagy-related gene that has vital functions in nutrient utilization, sclerotia development and pathogenicity in S. sclerotiorum.
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