Characterization of bronze leaf disease in western Canadian aspen and poplar trees

Aspen and poplar trees are important horticultural plants grown in Canada for aesthetic, commercial woodlot and windbreak applications. Bronze leaf is a destructive disease in Populus spp. and is caused by the fungal pathogen Apioplagiostoma populi Barr. This pathogen is often difficult to isolate and confirm from infected plant tissues and has been mainly identified by disease symptoms and morphological characteristics of A. populi when fruiting bodies form on infected leaves or branches. Affected leaves and branches typically become necrotic and bronze in colour. Air-borne spores and nursery shipments containing infected plants play an important role in the efficient movement of the pathogen. In this study, bronze leaf disease samples from symptomatic trees in Canada were examined microscopically for A. populi perithecia and asci. Pathogen-specific genomic sequences were identified for the development of sensitive stringent diagnostics that indicated branches and petioles were the most effective tissues for detecting A. populi. Leaf samples from symptomatic trees were collected in Canada and examined for perithecia to microscopically characterize A. populi asci and ascospores. Disease associated DNA sequences of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) 5.8S region of the nuclear ribosomal were isolated from perithecia and symptomatic tree samples. Morphological and molecular biological data from this study characterized the relationship and epidemiology of A. populi and enabled the development of rapid diagnostic methods that restrict the extent of further losses in amenity and commercial plantings of aspen and poplar.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

Complete genomic sequence of a Rubus yellow net virus isolate and detection of genome-wide pararetrovirus-derived small RNAs

•Rubus yellow net virus (RYNV) complete genomic sequence.•Sequences indicate RYNV is a distantly related member of the genus Badnavirus.•A full length clone confirmed validity of the genomic sequence.•Detected virus-derived small RNA (vsRNA) in RYNV infected raspberry tissue.•Mapping vsRNA showed uneven genome-wide clustering in both RYNV strands. Rubus yellow net virus (RYNV) was cloned and sequenced from a red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.) plant exhibiting symptoms of mosaic and mottling in the leaves. Its genomic sequence indicates that it is a distinct member of the genus Badnavirus, with 7932bp and seven ORFs, the first three corresponding in size and location to the ORFs found in the type member Commelina yellow mottle virus. Bioinformatic analysis of the genomic sequence detected several features including nucleic acid binding motifs, multiple zinc finger-like sequences and domains associated with cellular signaling. Subsequent sequencing of the small RNAs (sRNAs) from RYNV-infected R. idaeus leaf tissue was used to determine any RYNV sequences targeted by RNA silencing and identified abundant virus-derived small RNAs (vsRNAs). The majority of the vsRNAs were 22-nt in length. We observed a highly uneven genome-wide distribution of vsRNAs with strong clustering to small defined regions distributed over both strands of the RYNV genome. Together, our data show that sequences of the aphid-transmitted pararetrovirus RYNV are targeted in red raspberry by the interfering RNA pathway, a predominant antiviral defense mechanism in plants

Amplification of cell signaling and disease resistance by an immunity receptor Ve1Ve2 heterocomplex in plants

Immunity cell-surface receptors Ve1 and Ve2 protect against fungi of the genus Verticillium causing early dying, a worldwide disease in many crops. Characterization of microbe-associated molecular pattern immunity receptors has advanced our understanding of disease resistance but signal amplification remains elusive. Here, we report that transgenic plants expressing Ve1 and Ve2 together, reduced pathogen titres by a further 90% compared to plants expressing only Ve1 or Ve2. Confocal and immunoprecipitation confirm that the two receptors associate to form heteromeric complexes in the absence of the ligand and positively regulate signaling. Bioassays show that the Ve1Ve2 complex activates race-specific amplified immunity to the pathogen through a rapid burst of reactive oxygen species (ROS). These results indicate a mechanism by which the composition of a cell-surface receptor heterocomplex may be optimized to increase immunity against devastating plant diseases.</p

Tomato Ve disease resistance genes encode cell surface-like receptors

In tomato, Ve is implicated in race-specific resistance to infection by Verticillium species causing crop disease. Characterization of the Ve locus involved positional cloning and isolation of two closely linked inverted genes. Expression of individual Ve genes in susceptible potato plants conferred resistance to an aggressive race 1 isolate of Verticillium albo-atrum. The deduced primary structure of Ve1 and Ve2 included a hydrophobic N-terminal signal peptide, leucine-rich repeats containing 28 or 35 potential glycosylation sites, a hydrophobic membrane-spanning domain, and a C-terminal domain with the mammalian E/DXXXLφ or YXXφ endocytosis signals (φ is an amino acid with a hydrophobic side chain). A leucine zipper-like sequence occurs in the hydrophobic N-terminal signal peptide of Ve1 and a Pro-Glu-Ser-Thr (PEST)-like sequence resides in the C-terminal domain of Ve2. These structures suggest that the Ve genes encode a class of cell-surface glycoproteins with receptor-mediated endocytosis-like signals and leucine zipper or PEST sequences