Unraveling the metabolic response of Brassica oleracea exposed to Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris

J Sci Food Agric. 2018 Aug;98(10):3675-3683. doi: 10.1002/jsfa.8876. Epub 2018 Feb 20.

Abstract

Background: Brassica crops together with cereals represent the basis of world supplies. Due to their importance, the production losses caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris (Xcc) infection represent a high economic impact. Understanding molecular and biochemical mechanisms of plants is essential to develop resistant crops with durable protection against diseases. In this regard, metabolomics has emerged as a valuable technology to provide an overview of the biological status of a plant exposed to a disease. This study investigated the dynamic changes in the metabolic profile of Brassica oleracea plants during an Xcc infection from leaves collected at five different days post infection using a mass spectrometry approach.

Results: Results showed that Xcc infection causes dynamic changes in the metabolome of B. oleracea. Moreover, induction/repression pattern of the metabolites implicated in the response follows a complex dynamics during infection progression, indicating a complex temporal response. Specific metabolic pathways such as alkaloids, coumarins or sphingolipids are postulated as promising key role candidates in the infection response.

Conclusion: This work tries to decipher the changes produced on Brassica crops metabolome under Xcc infection and represents a step forward in the understanding of B. oleracea-Xcc interaction. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

Keywords: Brassica oleracea; Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris; biotic stress; mass spectrometry; metabolome.

MeSH terms

  • Brassica / metabolism*
  • Brassica / microbiology*
  • Mass Spectrometry
  • Plant Diseases / microbiology*
  • Plant Leaves / metabolism
  • Plant Leaves / microbiology
  • Xanthomonas campestris / physiology*