Distinct profiles of plant immune resilience revealed by natural variation in warm temperature‐modulated disease resistance among Arabidopsis accessions

Abstract

Elevated temperature suppresses the plant defence hormone salicylic acid (SA) by downregulating the expression of master immune regulatory genes CALMODULIN BINDING PROTEIN 60‐LIKE G (CBP60g) and SYSTEMIC ACQUIRED RESISTANCE DEFICIENT1 (SARD1). However, previous studies in Arabidopsis thaliana plants have primarily focused on the accession Columbia‐0 (Col‐0), while the genetic determinants of intraspecific variation in Arabidopsis immunity under elevated temperature remain unknown. Here we show that BASIC HELIX LOOP HELIX 059 (bHLH059), a thermosensitive SA regulator at nonstress temperatures, does not regulate immune suppression under warmer temperatures. In agreement, temperature‐resilient and ‐sensitive Arabidopsis accessions based on disease resistance to the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (Pst) DC3000 did not correlate with bHLH059 polymorphisms. Instead, we found that temperature‐resilient accessions exhibit varying CBP60g and SARD1 expression profiles, potentially revealing CBP60g/SARD1‐dependent and independent mechanisms of immune resilience to warming temperature. We identified thermoresilient accessions that exhibited either temperature‐sensitive or ‐insensitive induction of the SA biosynthetic gene ICS1 (direct target gene of CBP60g and SARD1) and SA hormone levels. Collectively, this study has unveiled the intraspecific diversity of Arabidopsis immune responses under warm temperatures, which could aid in predicting plant responses to climate change and provide foundational knowledge for climate‐resilient crop engineering.