HighlightThis study implicates actin dynamics in glandular trichome development, cytosolic control of specialized metabolism, and mechanical properties of plant tissues.

Fusarium graminearum is a destructive pathogen of cereals that can cause stalk rot in maize. Stalk rot results in yield losses due to impaired grain filling, premature senescence, and lodging, which limits production and harvesting of ears. In addition, mycotoxins can make infected tissues unfit for silage. Our objectives were to evaluate the natural variation in stalk rot resistance among maize inbreds, to establish whether deoxynivalenol (DON)- and zearalenone (ZEA)-deficient strains are pathogenic on a panel of diverse inbreds, and to quantify the accumulation of DON in infected stalk tissue. Wild-type F. graminearum and mycotoxin mutants (DON and ZEA) were used to separately inoculate stalks of 9-week-old plants of 20 inbreds in the greenhouse. Plants were evaluated for lesion area at the inoculation point at 0, 2, 14, and 28 days postinoculation and tissues around lesions were sampled to determine the DON content. Regardless of their ability to produce DON or ZEA, all tested F. graminearum strains caused stalk rot; however, significant differences in disease levels were detected. Among the tested inbreds, Mp717 was resistant to all three F. graminearum strains while Mp317 and HP301 were only partially resistant. Accumulation of DON was significantly lower in infected stalks of the resistant and partially resistant inbreds than the susceptible inbreds. Analysis of the 20 inbreds using data from 17 simple-sequence repeats revealed population structure among the individuals; however, there was no association between genetic clustering and stalk rot resistance. These findings are an additional step toward breeding maize inbreds suitable for planting in fields infested with F. graminearum.

All known orthologs of a secondary wall-associated cellulose synthase (CesA) gene from Arabidopsis, AtCesA8, encode CesA proteins with two consecutive methionines at their N-termini (MM or 2M). Here, we report that these 2Ms in an aspen ortholog of AtCesA8, PtdCesA8A, are important for maintaining normal wood cellulose biosynthesis in aspen trees. Overexpression of an altered PtdCesA8A cDNA encoding a PtdCesA8A protein missing one methionine at the N-terminus (1M) in aspen resulted in substantial decrease in cellulose content and caused negative effects on wood strength, suggesting that both methionines are essential for proper CesA expression and function in developing xylem tissues. Transcripts from a pair of paralogous native PtdCesA8 genes, as well as introduced PtdCesA8A:1M transgenes were significantly reduced in developing xylem tissues of transgenic aspen plants, suggestive of a co-suppression event. Overexpression of a native PtdCesA8A cDNA encoding a CesA protein with 2Ms at the N-terminus did not cause any such phenotypic changes. These results suggest the importance of 2Ms present at the N-terminus of PtdCesA8A protein during cellulose synthesis in aspen.

The effect of altering the expression level of the F5H gene was investigated in three wood tissues (normal, opposite and tension wood) in 1-year-old hybrid poplar clone 717 (Populus tremula × Populus alba L.), containing the F5H gene under the control of the C4H promoter. Elevated expression of the F5H gene in poplar has been previously reported to increase the percent syringyl content of lignin. The wild-type and three transgenic lines were inclined 45° for 3 months to induce tension wood formation. Tension and opposite wood from inclined trees, along with normal wood from control trees, were analyzed separately for carbohydrates, lignin, cellulose crystallinity and microfibril angle (MFA). In the wild-type poplar, the lignin in tension wood contained a significantly higher percentage of syringyl than normal wood or opposite wood. However, there was no significant difference in the percent syringyl content of the three wood types within each of the transgenic lines. Increasing the F5H gene expression caused an increase in the percent syringyl content and a slight decrease in the total lignin in normal wood. In tension wood, the addition of a gelatinous layer in the fiber walls resulted in a consistently lower percentage of total lignin in the tissue. Acid-soluble lignin was observed to increase by up to 2.3-fold in the transgenic lines. Compared with normal wood and opposite wood, cell wall crystallinity in tension wood was higher and the MFA was smaller, as expected, with no evidence of an effect from modifying the syringyl monomer ratio. Tension wood in all the lines contained consistently higher total sugar and glucose percentages when compared with normal wood within the respective lines. However, both sugar and glucose percentages were lower in the tension wood of transgenic lines when compared with the tension wood of wild-type trees. Evaluating the response of trees with altered syringyl content to gravity will improve our understanding of the changes in cell wall chemistry and ultrastructural properties of normal, opposite and tension wood in plants.