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. 2021 Jun 22;22(13):6688.
doi: 10.3390/ijms22136688.

Pathogenesis-Related Genes of PR1, PR2, PR4, and PR5 Families Are Involved in the Response to Fusarium Infection in Garlic (Allium sativum L.)

Olga K Anisimova  1 , Anna V Shchennikova  1 , Elena Z Kochieva  1 , Mikhail A Filyushin  1
Affiliations

Pathogenesis-Related Genes of PR1, PR2, PR4, and PR5 Families Are Involved in the Response to Fusarium Infection in Garlic (Allium sativum L.)

Olga K Anisimova et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Plants of the genus Allium developed a diversity of defense mechanisms against pathogenic fungi of the genus Fusarium, including transcriptional activation of pathogenesis-related (PR) genes. However, the information on the regulation of PR factors in garlic (Allium sativum L.) is limited. In the present study, we identified AsPR genes putatively encoding PR1, PR2, PR4, and PR5 proteins in A. sativum cv. Ershuizao, which may be involved in the defense against Fusarium infection. The promoters of the AsPR1-5 genes contained jasmonic acid-, salicylic acid-, gibberellin-, abscisic acid-, auxin-, ethylene-, and stress-responsive elements associated with the response to plant parasites. The expression of AsPR1c, d, g, k, AsPR2b, AsPR5a, c (in roots), and AsPR4a(c), b, and AsPR2c (in stems and cloves) significantly differed between garlic cultivars resistant and susceptible to Fusarium rot, suggesting that it could define the PR protein-mediated protection against Fusarium infection in garlic. Our results provide insights into the role of PR factors in A. sativum and may be useful for breeding programs to increase the resistance of Allium crops to Fusarium infections.

Keywords: Fusarium spp.; biotic stress; garlic Allium sativum L.; gene expression; gene structure; pathogenesis-related proteins.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Chromosomal locations of the AsPR1 (red), AsPR2 (green), AsPR4 (blue), and AsPR5 (purple) genes. The chromosome lengths indicated on the left are based on the A. sativum cv. Ershuizao genome (PRJNA606385) [31]; chr, chromosome.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Expression heatmap of PR genes in Allium sativum cv. Ershuizao (GSE145455). The mRNA expression of AsPR1 (red), AsPR2 (green), AsPR4 (blue), and AsPR5 (purple) in the roots, bulbs (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 correspond to 192-, 197-, 202-, 207-, 212-, 217-, 222-, and 227-day-old bulbs, respectively), leaves, buds, flowers, and sprouts. The color scheme indicates the gene expression gradient from low (red) to high (green).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Transcription of the AsPR1a(b), AsPR1c, AsPR1d, AsPR1f(g), AsPR1i(l), and AsPR1k genes in Allium sativum cv. Sarmat (FBR-resistant) and Strelets (FBR-susceptible) in response to Fusarium proliferatum infection. The plants were incubated with F. proliferatum conidia and analyzed for mRNA levels in the roots, stems, and cloves at 24 and 96 hpi by qRT-PCR. The data were normalized to GAPDH and UBQ mRNA levels and presented as fold change (mean ± SE) of the control taken as 1; * p < 0.01, compared to the uninfected control.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Expression of the AsPR2a, b, c genes in Allium sativum cv. Sarmat (FBR-resistant) and Strelets (FBR-susceptible) after Fusarium proliferatum infection. The plants were incubated with F. proliferatum conidia and analyzed for mRNA levels in the roots, stems, and cloves at 24 and 96 hpi by qRT-PCR. The data were normalized to GAPDH and UBQ mRNA levels and presented as fold change (mean ± SE) of the control taken as 1; * p < 0.01, compared to the uninfected control.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Expression of the AsPR4a(c) and AsPR4b genes in Allium sativum cv. Sarmat (FBR-resistant) and Strelets (FBR-susceptible) infected with Fusarium proliferatum. The plants were incubated with F. proliferatum conidia and analyzed for mRNA levels in the roots, stems, and cloves at 24 and 96 hpi by qRT-PCR. The data were normalized to GAPDH and UBQ mRNA levels and presented as fold change (mean ± SE) of the control taken as 1; * p < 0.01, compared to the uninfected control. Because AsPR2a and AsPR4c are 100% identical, the AsPR4a transcription level also includes that of AsPR4c.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Expression of the AsPR5a, c genes in Allium sativum cv. Sarmat (FBR-resistant) and Strelets (FBR-susceptible) after infection with Fusarium proliferatum. The plants were incubated with F. proliferatum conidia and analyzed for mRNA levels in the roots, stems, and cloves at 24 and 96 hpi by qRT-PCR. The data were normalized to GAPDH and UBQ mRNA levels and presented as fold change (mean ± SE) of the control taken as 1; * p < 0.01 compared to the uninfected control.
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