Neofusicoccum parvum Colonization of the Grapevine Woody Stem Triggers Asynchronous Host Responses at the Site of Infection and in the Leaves

Abstract

Grapevine trunk diseases cause important economic losses in vineyards worldwide. Neofusicoccum parvum, one of the most aggressive causal agents of the trunk disease Botryosphaeria dieback, colonizes cells and tissues of the grapevine wood, leading to the formation of an internal canker. Symptoms then extend to distal shoots, with wilting of leaves and bud mortality. Our aim was to characterize the transcriptional dynamics of grapevine genes in the woody stem and in the leaves during Neofusicoccum parvum colonization. Genome-wide transcriptional profiling at seven distinct time points (0, 3, and 24 hours; 2, 6, 8, and 12 weeks) showed that both stems and leaves undergo extensive transcriptomic reprogramming in response to infection of the stem. While most intense transcriptional responses were detected in the stems at 24 hours, strong responses were not detected in the leaves until the next sampling point at 2 weeks post-inoculation. Network co-expression analysis identified modules of co-expressed genes common to both organs and showed most of these genes were asynchronously modulated. The temporal shift between stem vs. leaf responses affected transcriptional modulation of genes involved in both signal perception and transduction, as well as downstream biological processes, including oxidative stress, cell wall rearrangement and cell death. Promoter analysis of the genes asynchronously modulated in stem and leaves during N. parvum colonization suggests that the temporal shift of transcriptional reprogramming between the two organs might be due to asynchronous co-regulation by common transcriptional regulators. Topology analysis of stem and leaf co-expression networks pointed to specific transcription factor-encoding genes, including WRKY and MYB, which may be associated with the observed transcriptional responses in the two organs.

Diversity and bioactivities of fungal endophytes from Distylium chinense, a rare waterlogging tolerant plant endemic to the Three Gorges Reservoir

“…Among them, Diaporthe and Phomopsis complex are the causes of seed decay and cause soybean blight and canker diseases [76]. Neofusicoccum parvum was reported as one of the most aggressive causal agents of the trunk disease Botryosphaeria dieback [77]. Botryosphaeria and its anamorph complex are particularly important for symptoms such as fruit rot, shoot blight, dieback and canker of numerous woody hosts [78].…”

VviERF6Ls: an expanded clade in Vitis responds transcriptionally to abiotic and biotic stresses and berry development

“…CS plants inoculated with N. parvum had significantly enhanced VviERF6L transcript accumulation in woody stems two weeks after treatment ( Fig. 9) [GSE97900] [43]. Interestingly, VviERF6Ls also responded to the wounding aspect of this treatment, which consisted of taking a power drill to the woody stem.…”

Diversity and bioactivities of fungal endophytes from Distylium chinense, a rare waterlogging tolerant plant endemic to the Three Gorges Reservoir

“…Diaporthe and Phomopsis complex were the causes of seed decay and cause soybean blight and canker diseases [78]; Neofusicoccum parvum was reported as one of the most aggressive causal agents of the trunk disease Botryosphaeria dieback [79]; Botryosphaeria and its anamorph complex were particularly important for symptoms such as fruit rot, shoot blight, dieback and canker of numerous woody hosts [80]. Although the symptoms of disease did not appear in D. chinense plant collected, as reported, these fungi might switch their lifestyles from a mutualistic to parasitic interaction which depended on genetic factors of both partners [81], imbalance in nutrient exchange [82] and environmental variations [83,84].…”