Functional characterization of CsWRKY, a sweet orange (citrus sinensis) transcription factor involved in citrus canker resistance

• Grant number: 13/22507-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: March 01, 2014
• End date: November 30, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biochemistry - Molecular Biology
• Principal Investigator: Celso Eduardo Benedetti
• Grantee: Hugo Massayoshi Shimo
• Host Institution: Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM). Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação (Brasil). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 11/20468-1 - Molecular mechanisms involved in pathogen adaptation and virulence, host resistance and symptom development in citrus-bacteria interactions, AP.TEM

Abstract

Our laboratory have been studying plant defense signaling pathways in sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) in response to Xanthomonas aurantifolii type C (XaC) infection, a bacterial pathogen responsible of citrus canker in lime; however in sweet orange, it induces a hipersensibility response (HR). In previous work, we analyzed in sweet orange "Pera" the differences in gene expression in response to XaC and Xanthomonas citri, the pathogen responsible for citrus canker in this citrus variety. A basal defense signaling pathway mediated by MAPK kinases and WRKY factors was identified, which preferably was activated in the incompatible interaction. In this study, our aim is to characterize one of the WRKY factors identified in defense response against XaC, named CsWRKY. Previous results indicate that CsWRKY confers resistance to X. citri when differently expressed in transgenic plants. Thus, this project main objectives are to characterize genetically modified citrus with altered expression of CsWRKY associated with X. citri resistance and/or other pathogens; identify potential direct targets of transactivation of CsWRKY; and test the hypothesis that CsWRKY is phosphorilated by the CsMAPK1 protein, a kinase involved in plant defense against XaC and X. citri, recently described by our team, that would be upstream of the CsWRKY factor in the plant basal defense signaling cascade in citrus. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DE LIMA SILVA, CAIO CESAR; SHIMO, HUGO MASSAYOSHI; DE FELICIO, RAFAEL; MERCALDI, GUSTAVO FERNANDO; ROCCO, SILVANA APARECIDA; BENEDETTI, CELSO EDUARDO. Structure-function relationship of a citrus salicylate methylesterase and role of salicylic acid in citrus canker resistance. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, v. 9, MAR 7 2019. (11/20468-1, 13/22507-0, 16/03151-8, 13/22399-2)

SHIMO, HUGO MASSAYOSHI; TERASSI, CAROLINA; SILVA, CAIO CESAR LIMA; ZANELLA, JACKELINE DE LIMA; MERCALDI, GUSTAVO FERNANDO; ROCCO, SILVANA APARECIDA; BENEDETTI, CELSO EDUARDO. Role of the Citrus sinensis RNA deadenylase CsCAF1 in citrus canker resistance. MOLECULAR PLANT PATHOLOGY, v. 20, n. 8, p. 1105-1118, AUG 2019. (13/22507-0, 11/20468-1, 14/50880-0)