NF-YA transcription factors suppress jasmonic acid-mediated antiviral defense and facilitate viral infection in rice

PLoS Pathog. 2022 May 13;18(5):e1010548. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010548. eCollection 2022 May.

Abstract

NF-Y transcription factors are known to play many diverse roles in the development and physiological responses of plants but little is known about their role in plant defense. Here, we demonstrate the negative roles of rice NF-YA family genes in antiviral defense against two different plant viruses, Rice stripe virus (RSV, Tenuivirus) and Southern rice black-streaked dwarf virus (SRBSDV, Fijivirus). RSV and SRBSDV both induced the expression of OsNF-YA family genes. Overexpression of OsNF-YAs enhanced rice susceptibility to virus infection, while OsNF-YAs RNAi mutants were more resistant. Transcriptome sequencing showed that the expression of jasmonic acid (JA)-related genes was significantly decreased in plants overexpressing OsNF-YA when they were infected by viruses. qRT-PCR and JA sensitivity assays confirmed that OsNF-YAs play negative roles in regulating the JA pathway. Further experiments showed that OsNF-YAs physically interact with JA signaling transcription factors OsMYC2/3 and interfere with JA signaling by dissociating the OsMYC2/3-OsMED25 complex, which inhibits the transcriptional activation activity of OsMYC2/3. Together, our results reveal that OsNF-YAs broadly inhibit plant antiviral defense by repressing JA signaling pathways, and provide new insight into how OsNF-YAs are directly associated with the JA pathway.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antiviral Agents / metabolism
  • Cyclopentanes
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
  • Oryza* / metabolism
  • Oxylipins
  • Plant Diseases
  • Plant Proteins / genetics
  • Plant Proteins / metabolism
  • Plants, Genetically Modified / metabolism
  • Tenuivirus* / genetics
  • Tenuivirus* / metabolism
  • Transcription Factors / genetics
  • Transcription Factors / metabolism
  • Virus Diseases*

Substances

  • Antiviral Agents
  • Cyclopentanes
  • Oxylipins
  • Plant Proteins
  • Transcription Factors
  • jasmonic acid

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Plan of China to ZS (2021YFD1400500), the Natural Science Foundation of China to ZS (32022072), YL (32172416) and ZW (32100103), Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation to ZS (LZ22C140001), and the K. C. Wong Magna Fund in Ningbo University to ZS. The funders had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.