Abstract
Exogenous application of the protein elicitors MoHrip1 and MoHrip2, which were isolated from the pathogenic fungus Magnaporthe oryzae (M. oryzae), was previously shown to induce a hypersensitive response in tobacco and to enhance resistance to rice blast. In this work, we successfully transformed rice with the mohrip1 and mohrip2 genes separately. The MoHrip1 and MoHrip2 transgenic rice plants displayed higher resistance to rice blast and stronger tolerance to drought stress than wild-type (WT) rice and the vector-control pCXUN rice. The expression of salicylic acid (SA)- and abscisic acid (ABA)-related genes was also increased, suggesting that these two elicitors may trigger SA signaling to protect the rice from damage during pathogen infection and regulate the ABA content to increase drought tolerance in transgenic rice. Trypan blue staining indicated that expressing MoHrip1 and MoHrip2 in rice plants inhibited hyphal growth of the rice blast fungus. Relative water content (RWC), water usage efficiency (WUE) and water loss rate (WLR) were measured to confirm the high capacity for water retention in transgenic rice. The MoHrip1 and MoHrip2 transgenic rice also exhibited enhanced agronomic traits such as increased plant height and tiller number.
Highlights
Magnaporthe oryzae (M. oryzae) is a plant-pathogenic fungus that causes rice blast, a destructive rice plant disease, around the world [1]
Transgenic technology has become an efficient method to explore the function of exogenous genes in plants
MoHrip1 and MoHrip2 were isolated from the pathogenic fungus M. oryzae, and the gene sequences of the two elicitors were cloned [14,15]
Summary
Magnaporthe oryzae (M. oryzae) is a plant-pathogenic fungus that causes rice blast, a destructive rice plant disease, around the world [1]. Traditional fungicides are usually used to control blast; this approach gradually increases the potential resistance of M. oryzae to fungicides and has adverse effects on human health and the environment [2,3]. Rice plants face biotic and abiotic stress in nature that can cause severe losses in production. The transgenic approach is an effective strategy for generating disease-resistant, drought-resistant and highquality rice varieties.
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