Identification of Plasmopara viticola genes potentially involved in pathogenesis on grapevine suggests new similarities between oomycetes and true fungi.

Plant diseases caused by fungi and oomycetes result in significant economic losses every year. Although phylogenetically distant, these organisms share many common features during infection. We identified genes in the oomycete Plasmopara viticola that are potentially involved in pathogenesis in grapevine by using fungal databases and degenerate primers. Fragments of P. viticola genes encoding NADH-ubiquinone oxidoreductase (PvNuo), laccase (PvLac), and invertase (PvInv) were obtained. PvNuo was overexpressed at 2 days postinoculation (dpi), during the development of the first hyphal structures and haustoria. PvLac was overexpressed at 5 dpi when genes related to pterostilbene biosynthesis were induced in grapevine. Transcript level for PvInv increased between 1 and 4 dpi before reaching a plateau. These results might suggest a finely tuned strategy of infection depending on nutrition and plant response. Phylogenetic analyses of PvNuo showed that P. viticola clustered with other oomycetes and was associated with brown algae and diatoms, forming a typical Straminipila clade. Based on the comparison of available sequences for laccases and invertases, the group formed by P. viticola and other oomycetes tended to be more closely related to Opisthokonta than to Straminipila. Convergent evolution or horizontal gene transfer could explain the presence of fungus-like genes in P. viticola.

Nitric oxide production mediates oligogalacturonide-triggered immunity and resistance to Botrytis cinerea in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Nitric oxide (NO) regulates a wide range of plant processes from development to environmental adaptation. In this study, we investigated the production and/or function of NO in Arabidopsis thaliana leaf discs and plants elicited by oligogalacturonides (OGs) and challenged with Botrytis cinerea. We provided evidence that OGs triggered a fast and long lasting NO production which was Ca(2+) dependent and involved nitrate reductase (NR). Accordingly, OGs triggered an increase of both NR activity and transcript accumulation. NO production was also sensitive to the mammalian NO synthase inhibitor L-NAME. Intriguingly, we showed that L-NAME affected NO production by interfering with NR activity, thus questioning the mechanisms of how this compound impairs NO synthesis in plants. We further demonstrated that NO modulates RBOHD-mediated reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and participates in the regulation of OG-responsive genes such as anionic peroxidase (PER4) and a ß-1,3-glucanase. Mutant plants impaired in PER4 and ß-1,3-glucanase, as well as Col-0 plants treated with the NO scavenger cPTIO, were more susceptible to B. cinerea. Taken together, our investigation deciphers part of the mechanisms linking NO production, NO-induced effects and basal resistance to B. cinerea.

In vitro tolerance to Botrytis cinerea of grapevine 41B rootstock in transgenic plants expressing the stilbene synthase Vst1 gene under the control of a pathogen-inducible PR 10 promoter.

Resveratrol is a major phytoalexin in grapevine but its synthesis in response to phytopathogen attack decreases with grape berry ripening. A chimeric gene combining an alfalfa PR 10 promoter and Vst1 (Vitis stilbene synthase 1) gene was introduced into the genome of 41B rootstock. Transgenic plants were analysed for resveratrol production in leaves infected with Botrytis using an in vitro test. Among the 50 transgenic lines analysed, some exhibited a production lower than the non-transgenic control, but others accumulated resveratrol from 5-100-fold. Moreover, in the latter clones, symptoms were highly reduced in response to infection. These results were a good indication that the combination of a pathogen-inducible promoter and a defence gene may increase tolerance against fungi in grapevine. The efficacy of this approach should be further tested by experiments conducted in the vineyard.