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ARS Home » Plains Area » Lincoln, Nebraska » Wheat, Sorghum and Forage Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #359075
Research Project: Genetic Improvement of Sorghum for Bioenergy, Feed, and Food Uses

Location: Wheat, Sorghum and Forage Research

Title: Response of wheat constitutively expressing lignin genes to fusarium head blight

Author
item Duray, Zachary
item Funnell-Harris, Deanna
item Graybosch, Robert
item Sattler, Scott
item WEGULO, STEPHEN - University Of Nebraska
item CLEMENTE, THOMAS - University Of Nebraska

Submitted to: National Fusarium Head Blight Forum
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/3/2018
Publication Date: 12/3/2018
Citation: Duray, Z.T., Funnell-Harris, D.L., Graybosch, R.A., Sattler, S.E., Wegulo, S.N., Clemente, T.E. 2018. Response of wheat constitutively expressing lignin genes to fusarium head blight. National Fusarium Head Blight Forum Proceedings. p.70

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The goal of this research is to identify resistance to Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) in wheat through increased monolignol biosynthesis, which produces the subunits of lignin. Monolignols are secreted into plant cell walls to provide structural support, and this pathway also is induced upon pathogen attack. The spring wheat CB037 was transformed with constitutive expression constructs containing the gene for the sorghum transcription factor SbMyb60, or a gene encoding a sorghum monolignol pathway enzyme [caffeoyl-CoA 3-O-methyltransferase (SbCCoAOMT), 4-coumarate-Coenzyme A ligase (Sb4CL), or p-coumarate 3-hydroxylase (SbC3H)], each under control of the cauliflower mosaic virus E35S promoter. Greenhouse-grown plants of lead transgenic events, CB037, and the checks, Sumai No. 3 (FHB moderately resistant) and Wheaton (FHB susceptible), were either spray-inoculated with a Fusarium graminearum conidial suspension to assess Type I resistance (to initial infection), or point-inoculated to assess Type II resistance (to pathogen spread). Disease severity, determined at multiple time points up to 21 days after inoculation, was used to calculate Area Under the Disease Progress Curve (AUDPC). Proportion of Fusarium Damaged Kernels (FDK) and deoxynivalenol (DON) levels also were determined. In two assays, FDK following point inoculations showed that transgenic events carrying SbC3H (one of two) and SbCCoAOMT (one of two) were not significantly different from Sumai No. 3. However, after a third assay conducted under warmer conditions, FDK of these transgenic lines were significantly greater than SuMai No. 3. For the three assays, SbC3H and SbCCoAOMT lines had reduced AUDPC as compared with Sb4CL and SbMyb60, but not significantly different from Wheaton or CB037 in both point and spray assays. Disease measurements for Sb4CL and SbMyb60 lead events, following three assays with point and spray inoculations, were similar to Wheaton (FDK and DON) or even significantly greater (AUDPC). DON levels in all overexpression lines were similar to Wheaton and CB037. The enzymes C3H and CCoAOMT and intermediates in the monolignol biosynthesis pathway have been associated with resistance against pathogen infection in other systems. Genetic crosses of CB037 carrying SbCCoAOMT and SbC3H overexpression constructs are being performed with Sumai No. 3 and other spring wheat lines with moderate FHB resistance to stack multiple resistance strategies.