Comparative Transcriptomics Suggests Early Modifications by Vintec® in Grapevine Trunk of Hormonal Signaling and Secondary Metabolism Biosynthesis in Response to Phaeomoniella chlamydospora and Phaeoacremonium minimum

Abstract

Given their well-known antifungal abilities, species of the genus Trichoderma are of significant interest in modern agriculture. Recent studies have shown that Trichoderma species can induce plant resistance against different phytopathogens. To further extend this line of investigation, we investigate herein the transcriptomic response of grapevine trunk to Vintec®, which is a Trichoderma atroviride SC1-based commercial formulation for biological control of grapevine trunk diseases and which reduces wood colonization. The aim of the study is to understand whether the biocontrol agent Vintec® modifies the trunk response to Phaeoacremonium minimum and Phaeomoniella chlamydospora, which are two esca-associated fungal pathogens. An analysis of transcriptional regulation identifies clusters of co-regulated genes whose transcriptomic reprogramming in response to infection depends on the absence or presence of Vintec®. On one hand, the results show that Vintec® differentially modulates the expression of putative genes involved in hormonal signaling, especially those involved in auxin signaling. On the other hand, most significant gene expression modifications occur among secondary-metabolism-related genes, especially regarding phenylpropanoid metabolism and stilbene biosynthesis. Taken together, these results suggest that the biocontrol agent Vintec® induces wood responses that counteract disease development.

Microbial Biological Control of Fungi Associated with Grapevine Trunk Diseases: A Review of Strain Diversity, Modes of Action, and Advantages and Limits of Current Strategies

“…It also modulated the expression of some genes involved in hormonal signaling, especially those involved in auxin signaling. Accordingly, the authors suggested that Vintec ® enhanced the primary defense response of the plant against Esca-associated pathogens [ 114 ].…”

Fungal trunk diseases of fruit trees in Europe: pathogens, spread and future directions

“…Microbial/fungal genome sequencing or metagenomics/ metabarcoding become a routine analysis and using the latest technology it is possible to generate near complete genomes (Robert-Siegwald et al, 2017;Eichmeier et al, 2022) or whole spectra of microbial/fungal communities (Eichmeier et al, 2018;Bruez et al, 2020;Gramaje et al 2022). There are also other applications of HTS technology which can serve understanding of the plant pathogen interaction as transcriptomics (Romeo-Oliván et al, 2022) or small RNA sequencing (Eichmeier et al, 2019).…”

Establishment of Biocontrol Agents and Their Impact on Rhizosphere Microbiome and Induced Grapevine Defenses Are Highly Soil-Dependent

“…Moreover, Trichoderma spp. have demonstrated their ability to stimulate plant growth and enhance defense mechanisms (Harman 2006;Leal et al 2021b;Pieterse et al 2014;Romeo-Oliván et al 2022;Vinale et al 2008;Waghunde et al 2016). In the context of grapevine diseases, Bacillus subtilis also ranks among the most commonly tested bacterial BCAs (Mesguida et al 2023;Mondello et al 2018).…”