Transcriptomic dissection reveals wide spread differential expression in chickpea during early time points of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceri Race 1 attack

PLoS One. 2017 May 25;12(5):e0178164. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0178164. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

Plants' reaction to underground microorganisms is complex as sessile nature of plants compels them to prioritize their responses to diverse microorganisms both pathogenic and symbiotic. Roots of important crops are directly exposed to diverse microorganisms, but investigations involving root pathogens are significantly less. Thus, more studies involving root pathogens and their target crops are necessitated to enrich the understanding of underground interactions. Present study reported the molecular complexities in chickpea during Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceri Race 1 (Foc1) infection. Transcriptomic dissections using RNA-seq showed significantly differential expression of molecular transcripts between infected and control plants of both susceptible and resistant genotypes. Radar plot analyses showed maximum expressional undulations after infection in both susceptible and resistant plants. Gene ontology and functional clustering showed large number of transcripts controlling basic metabolism of plants. Network analyses demonstrated defense components like peptidyl cis/trans isomerase, MAP kinase, beta 1,3 glucanase, serine threonine kinase, patatin like protein, lactolylglutathione lyase, coproporphyrinogen III oxidase, sulfotransferases; reactive oxygen species regulating components like respiratory burst oxidase, superoxide dismutases, cytochrome b5 reductase, glutathione reductase, thioredoxin reductase, ATPase; metabolism regulating components, myo inositol phosphate, carboxylate synthase; transport related gamma tonoplast intrinsic protein, and structural component, ubiquitins to serve as important nodals of defense signaling network. These nodal molecules probably served as hub controllers of defense signaling. Functional characterization of these hub molecules would not only help in developing better understanding of chickpea-Foc1 interaction but also place them as promising candidates for resistance management programs against vascular wilt of legumes.

MeSH terms

  • Cicer / metabolism
  • Cicer / microbiology*
  • Fusarium*
  • Gene Expression Profiling
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / physiology*
  • Gene Ontology
  • Plant Diseases / microbiology*
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction

Grants and funding

The authors are indebted to Director, Bose Institute for partially supporting the funds to perform the present study and providing the central instrumentation facilities. SG and MC are thankful to Bose Institute for their fellowships as Research Associates. AB (09/015(0378) /2009-EMR-1) and AG (09/015(0481) /2015-EMR-1) are grateful to Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, India for their fellowships. There was no additional external funding received for this study.