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ARS Home » Plains Area » Fargo, North Dakota » Edward T. Schafer Agricultural Research Center » Cereal Crops Improvement Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #405255
Research Project: Host-Pathogen Interactions Affecting Wheat and Barley

Location: Cereal Crops Improvement Research

Title: The necrotrophic pathogen Parastagonospora nodorum is a master manipulator of wheat defense

Author
item KARIYAWASAM, GAYAN - North Dakota State University
item NELSON, ASHLEY - North Dakota State University
item WILLIAMS, SIMON - The Australian National University
item SOLOMON, PETER - The Australian National University
item Faris, Justin
item Friesen, Timothy

Submitted to: Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/11/2023
Publication Date: 8/15/2023
Citation: Kariyawasam, G., Nelson, A., Williams, S., Solomon, P., Faris, J.D., Friesen, T.L. 2023. The necrotrophic pathogen Parastagonospora nodorum is a master manipulator of wheat defense. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions. https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-05-23-0067-IRW.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-05-23-0067-IRW

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Parastagonospora nodorum is a destructive pathogen of wheat that is known to secrete necrotrophic effectors that target wheat susceptibility genes to induce programmed cell death (PCD) that is to the advantage of the pathogen. Intensive research over the last two decades has led to the cloning and functionally characterization of five such necrotrophic effectors including SnTox1, SnToxA, SnTox267, SnTox3, SnTox5 and three wheat susceptibility genes Tsn1, Snn1, and Snn3. Functional characterization has revealed that these effectors, in addition to inducing PCD, have additional roles in pathogenesis including chitin binding leading to protection from chitinases, blocking defense response signalling, and facilitating plant colonization. Much has been discovered in the last two decades, however, there are still large gaps in our understanding of how this necrotrophic pathogen is suscesfully manipulting wheat defense to complete its life cycle. Therefore, it is important to further characterize these necrotrophic effector interactions while also identifying novel traditional effectors using the well-developed tools and resources available in both P. nodorum and wheat. A complete understanding of how P. nodorum manipulates wheat defense to complete its pathogenic life cycle will not only provide fundamental knowledge about necrotrophic interactions but will also contribute to the successful management of septoria nodorum blotch on wheat.