Abstract
Concern over environmental pollution generated by chemical fungicides has led to the introduction of alternative pest management strategies to chemical fungicide application. One of those strategies is the induction of plant defense response by an abiotic elicitor. In the present study, field-grown grapevines were subjected to electrical stimulation using a solar panel from two weeks before flowering to harvest in the 2016 and 2020 growing seasons. In both years, electrical stimulation decreased the incidence of gray mold and/or ripe rot on bunches and downy mildew on leaves of the field-grown grapevine. Transcription of a gene encoding β-1,3-glucanase but not class IV chitinase in leaves of potted grapevine seedlings was upregulated 20 days after electrical stimulation, suggesting that electrical stimulation acts as an abiotic elicitor of plant defense response to fungal diseases. The gene expression of PR1 but not PDF1.2 was upregulated in Arabidopsis plants subjected to electrical stimulation. On the other hand, PR1 gene expression was not induced in salicylic acid (SA)-insensitive Arabidopsis mutant npr1-5 subjected to electrical stimulation. Taken together, electrical stimulation is responsible for plant defense response through the SA-dependent defense pathway. These findings would help us develop a novel and innovative practical technique that uses electrical stimulation in integrated pest management.
Highlights
The use of chemical fungicides is a simple strategy to protect grapevines from phytopathogens
Electrical stimulation increased resveratrol contents in berries of grapevines relative to those of control grapevines and electrode-treated grapevines [11], while we could not demonstrate any positive results related to physiological changes in Arabidopsis plants subjected to electrical stimulation
Future studies employing Arabidopsis pathosystem would reveal the accurate signaling pathways for plant defense response triggered by electrical stimulation in plants
Summary
The use of chemical fungicides is a simple strategy to protect grapevines from phytopathogens. Plasmopara viticola, which causes grape downy mildew, is a high-risk pathogen because of its high potential to acquire chemical fungicide resistance [1]. The introduction of practical techniques for inducing plant defense response in viticulture would contribute to suppressing the emergence of chemical fungicide-resistant phytopathogens by reducing chemical fungicide application. We demonstrated that electrical stimulation upregulated the transcription of genes related to stilbenoid biosynthesis in grape cells [11]. From these results, we formulated the hypothesis that electrical stimulation enhances plant defense response in grapevine as an abiotic elicitor. We demonstrate that the salicylic acid (SA)-dependent defense pathway is involved in plant defense response triggered by electrical stimulation
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