Development of nematode resistance in Arabidopsis by HD-RNAi-mediated silencing of the effector gene Mi-msp2

• Published in: Scientific reports 2019-11, Vol.9 (1), p.17404-11, Article 17404
• Main Authors: Joshi, Ila, Kumar, Anil, Singh, Ashish K., Kohli, Deshika, Raman, K. V., Sirohi, Anil, Chaudhury, Ashok, Jain, Pradeep K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 38/22; 38/39; 38/71; 38/89; 38/90; 42/41; 42/44; 631/337/505; 631/61/447/2311; Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Arabidopsis; Arabidopsis - genetics; Arabidopsis - parasitology; Disease Resistance - genetics; Double-stranded RNA; Economic importance; Eggs; Esophagus; Female; Females; Galls; Gene Silencing; Herbivory; Humanities and Social Sciences; mRNA; Msp2 gene; multidisciplinary; Nematodes; Parasites; Plants, Genetically Modified; Protozoan Proteins - chemistry; Protozoan Proteins - genetics; RNA Interference; RNA, Small Interfering - genetics; RNA-mediated interference; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); siRNA; Transgenic plants
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-53485-8

Root-knot nematodes (RKNs) are devastating parasites that infect thousands of plants. As RKN infection is facilitated by oesophageal gland effector genes, one such effector gene, Mi-msp2 , was selected for a detailed characterization. Based on domain analysis, the Mi-MSP2 protein contains an ShKT domain, which is likely involved in blocking K + channels and may help in evading the plant defence response. Expression of the Mi- msp2 gene was higher in juveniles (parasitic stage of RKNs) than in eggs and adults. Stable homozygous transgenic Arabidopsis lines expressing Mi-msp2 dsRNA were generated, and the numbers of galls, females and egg masses were reduced by 52–54%, 60–66% and 84–95%, respectively, in two independent RNAi lines compared with control plants. Furthermore, expression analysis revealed a significant reduction in Mi-msp2 mRNA abundance (up to 88%) in female nematodes feeding on transgenic plants expressing dsRNA, and northern blot analysis confirmed expression of the Mi-msp2 siRNA in the transgenic plants. Interestingly, a significant reduction in the reproduction factor was observed (nearly 40-fold). These data suggest that the Mi-msp2 gene can be used as a potential target for RKN management in crops of economic importance.