Plant Immunity Research Articles

OBTAINING TRANSGENIC POTATO PLANTS FOR COUNTERING PHYTOPHTHORA INFESTANS VIA “HIGS” METHOD IMPLEMENTATION

Oomycetes are a group of organisms that include some of the most dangerous plant pathogens capable of causing epiphytoties that lead to reduced crop yields and famine in some countries. The only available method of combating them – repeated application of fungicides in fields and careful selection of seed material – is ineffective for most of these pathogens. This paper proposes to use the HIGS (host-induced gene silencing) approach so that genetically modified plants, when infected with late blight, would cause the pathogen to silence its effector protein genes, which would prevent the pathogen from growing and reproducing in plant. To implement the HIGS method against the pathogen Phytophthora infestans, we developed two genetically engineered constructs, one of which uses the P. infestans RXLR-effector gene AVR3a-b as the RNA interference target, and the other uses a region of the PITG_03155 effector gene, which is conserved for both P. infestans and P. cactorum. After Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation of potato plants, we obtained four transgenic plants carrying a construct based on the AVR3a-b gene (two each of the “Milena” and “Gala” varieties) and one of “Milena” variety carrying a construct based on the PITG_03155 gene. These plants will be micro clonally propagated and tested for the presence of interfering RNA to the effector genes of P. infestans, after which the plant lines are planned to be planted under natural pathogenic background conditions and a comparative analysis with control plants for disease incidence and resistance will be conducted.

Bursaphelenchus xylophilus Venom Allergen-Like Protein BxVAP1, Triggering Plant Defense-Related Programmed Cell Death, Plays an Important Role in Regulating Pinus massoniana Terpene Defense Responses.

Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (pine wood nematode, PWN), a migratory plant-parasitic nematode, acts as an etiological agent, inflicting considerable damage to pine forests worldwide. Plant immunity constitutes a crucial factor in resisting various pathogenic invasions. The primary defensive responses of host pines against PWN infection encompass terpene accumulation, defense response-related gene expression, and programmed cell death. Venom allergen-like proteins (VAPs), as potential effectors, are instrumental in facilitating the successful colonization of PWNs. In this study, we investigated the inhibition of B. xylophilus VAP (BxVAP1) expression by RNA interference in vitro. Following BxVAP1 silencing, the reproduction rate and migration rate of the PWN population in Pinus massoniana decreased, the expression of the α-pinene synthase gene was induced, other terpene synthase and pathogenesis-related genes were inhibited and delayed, the peak times and levels of terpene-related substances were changed, and the degree of cavitation in P. massoniana was diminished. Transient expression of BxVAP1 in Nicotiana benthamiana revealed that BxVAP1 was expressed in both the cell membrane and nucleus, inducing programmed cell death and the expression of pathogen-associated molecular pattern-triggered immunity marker genes (NbAcre31 and NbPTI5). This study is the first to demonstrate that silencing the BxVAP1 gene affects host defense responses, including terpenoid metabolism in P. massoniana, and that BxVAP1 can be recognized by N. benthamiana as an effector to trigger its innate immunity, expanding our understanding of the parasitic mechanism of B. xylophilus.

A Novel SPOTTED LEAF1-1 (SPL11-1) Gene Confers Resistance to Rice Blast and Bacterial Leaf Blight Diseases in Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Programmed cell death (PCD) plays critical roles in plant immunity but must be regulated to prevent excessive damage. In this study, a novel spotted leaf (spl11-1) mutant was identified from an ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS) population. The SPL11-1 gene was genetically mapped to chromosome 12 between the Indel12-37 and Indel12-39 molecular markers, which harbor a genomic region of 27 kb. Annotation of the SPL11-1 genomic region revealed the presence of two candidate genes. Through gene prediction and cDNA sequencing, it was confirmed that the target gene in the spl11-1 mutant is allelic to the rice SPOTTED LEAF (SPL11), hereafter referred to as spl11-1. Sequence analysis of SPL11 revealed a single bp deletion (T) between the spl11-1 mutant and the ‘Shuangkang77009’ wild type. Moreover, protein structure analysis showed that the structural differences between the SPL11-1 and SPL11 proteins might lead to a change in the function of the SPL11 protein. Compared to the ‘Shuangkang77009’ wild type, the spl11-1 mutant showed more disease resistance. The agronomical evaluation showed that the spl11-1 mutant showed more adverse traits. Through further mutagenesis treatment, we obtained the spl11-2 mutant allelic to spl11-1, which has excellent agronomic traits and more improvement and may have certain breeding prospects in future breeding for disease resistance.

A time-course transcriptomic analysis reveals the key responses of a resistant rice cultivar to brown planthopper infestation.

The brown planthopper (BPH) is one of the most problematic pests affecting rice (Oryza sativa L.) yields in Asia. Breeding rice varieties containing resistance genes is the most economical and effective means of controlling BPH. In this study, the key factors in resistance to BPH were investigated between the high-resistance rice variety "R26" and the susceptible variety "TN1" using RNA-sequencing. We identified 9527 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the rice varieties under BPH-induced stress. Weighted time-course gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) indicated that the increased expression of genes is associated with plant hormones, MAPK signaling pathway and biosynthesis of other secondary metabolites, which were involved in disease resistance. A connection network identified a hub gene, OsREM4.1 (BGIOSGA024059), that may affect rice resistance to the BPH. Knocking out OsREM4.1 in rice can lead to a decrease in callose, making it less resistant to BPH. Overall, the expression of differentially expressed genes varies among rice varieties with different resistance in BPH invasion. Inaddition, R26 enhances resistance to BPH by upregulating genes and secondary metabolites related to stress resistance and plant immunity. In summary, our study provides valuable insights into the genome-wide expression profile of DEGs in rice under BPH invasion through high-throughput sequencing, and further suggests that R26 can be used to develop high resistance rice lines in BPH resistant breeding programs.

Conservation of molecular responses upon viral infection in the non-vascular plant Marchantia polymorpha

After plants transitioned from water to land around 450 million years ago, they faced novel pathogenic microbes. Their colonization of diverse habitats was driven by anatomical innovations like roots, stomata, and vascular tissue, which became central to plant-microbe interactions. However, the impact of these innovations on plant immunity and pathogen infection strategies remains poorly understood. Here, we explore plant-virus interactions in the bryophyte Marchantia polymorpha to gain insights into the evolution of these relationships. Virome analysis reveals that Marchantia is predominantly associated with RNA viruses. Comparative studies with tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) show that Marchantia shares core defense responses with vascular plants but also exhibits unique features, such as a sustained wound response preventing viral spread. Additionally, general defense responses in Marchantia are equivalent to those restricted to vascular tissues in Nicotiana, suggesting that evolutionary acquisition of developmental innovations results in re-routing of defense responses in vascular plants.

Antagonistic regulation of plant NLR-mediated autoimmunity by E3 ligase pairs.

Two plant U-box E3 ligases, PUB5 and PUB44, antagonistically regulate the NLR receptor SUMM2-mediated autoimmunity in Arabidopsis, indicating a new regulatory mechanism for fine-tuning plant immunity.

A GDSL motif-containing lipase modulates Sclerotinia sclerotiorum resistance in Brassica napus.

Sclerotinia stem rot (SSR) caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) De Bary is a devastating disease infecting hundreds of plant species. It also restricts the yield, quality, and safe production of rapeseed (Brassica napus) worldwide. However, the lack of resistance sources and genes to S. sclerotiorum has greatly restricted rapeseed SSR-resistance breeding. In this study, a previously identified GDSL motif-containing lipase gene, Brassica napus GDSL LIPASE-LIKE 1 (BnaC07.GLIP1), encoding a protein localized to the intercellular space, was characterized as functioning in plant immunity to S. sclerotiorum. The BnaC07.GLIP1 promoter is S. sclerotiorum-inducible and the expression of BnaC07.GLIP1 is substantially enhanced after S. sclerotiorum infection. Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) heterologously expressing and rapeseed lines overexpressing BnaC07.GLIP1 showed enhanced resistance to S. sclerotiorum, whereas RNAi suppression and CRISPR/Cas9 knockout B. napus lines were hyper-susceptible to S. sclerotiorum. Moreover, BnaC07.GLIP1 affected the lipid composition and induced the production of phospholipid molecules, such as phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidic acid, which were correlated with decreased levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and enhanced expression of defense-related genes. A B. napus bZIP44 transcription factor specifically binds the CGTCA motif of the BnaC07.GLIP1 promoter to positively regulate its expression. BnbZIP44 responded to S. sclerotiorum infection, and its heterologous expression inhibited ROS accumulation, thereby enhancing S. sclerotiorum resistance in Arabidopsis. Thus, BnaC07.GLIP1 functions downstream of BnbZIP44 and is involved in S. sclerotiorum resistance by modulating the production of phospholipid molecules and ROS homeostasis in B. napus, providing insights into the potential roles and functional mechanisms of BnaC07.GLIP1 in plant immunity and for improving rapeseed SSR disease-resistance breeding.

The Ectopic Expression of the MpDIR1(t) Gene Enhances the Response of Plants from Arabidopsis thaliana to Biotic Stress by Regulating the Defense Genes and Antioxidant Flavonoids.

The Defective in Induced Resistance 1 (DIR1) gene, a member of the lipid transferase proteins (LTPs), plays a crucial role in plant defense against pathogens. While previous transcriptomic studies have highlighted the significant expression of citrus LTPs during biotic stress, functional annotations of LTPs in the Citrus genera remain limited. In this study, we cloned the Murraya paniculata DIR1 (MpDIR1(t)) gene and overexpressed it in Arabidopsis thaliana to evaluate its stress response mechanisms against biotic stress. The transgenic Arabidopsis lines showed fewer disease symptoms in response to Pseudomonas syringae (Pst DC3000) compared to wild-type Arabidopsis. Defense and pathogenesis-responsive genes such as PR1, PR4, PR5, and WRKY12 were significantly induced, showing a 2- to 12-fold increase in all transgenic lines compared to the wild type. In addition, the Pst DC3000-infected transgenic Arabidopsis lines demonstrated elevated levels of flavonoids and salicylic acid (SA), along with higher expression of SA-related genes, compared to the wild type. Moreover, all transgenic lines possessed lower reactive oxygen species levels and higher activity of antioxidant defense enzymes such as superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase under Pst DC3000 stress compared to the wild type. The up-regulation of defense genes, activation of the SA pathway, accumulation of flavonoids, and reinforcement of antioxidant defense mechanisms in transgenic Arabidopsis lines in response to Pst DC3000 underscore the critical role of MpDIR1(t) in fortifying plant immunity. Thus, MpDIR1(t) constitutes a promising candidate gene for improving bacterial disease resistance in commercial citrus cultivars.

Dynamics of epitranscriptomes uncover translational reprogramming directed by ac4C in rice during pathogen infection.

Messenger RNA modifications play pivotal roles in RNA biology, but comprehensive landscape changes of epitranscriptomes remain largely unknown in plant immune response. Here we report translational reprogramming directed by ac4C mRNA modification upon pathogen challenge. We first investigate the dynamics of translatomes and epitranscriptomes and uncover that the change in ac4C at single-base resolution promotes translational reprogramming upon Magnaporthe oryzae infection. Then by characterizing the specific distributions of m1A, 2'O-Nm, ac4C, m5C, m6A and m7G, we find that ac4Cs, unlike other modifications, are enriched at the 3rd position of codons, which stabilizes the Watson-Crick base pairing. Importantly, we demonstrate that upon pathogen infection, the increased expression of the ac4C writer OsNAT10/OsACYR (N-ACETYLTRANSFERASE FOR CYTIDINE IN RNA) promotes translation to facilitate rapid activation of immune responses, including the enhancement of jasmonic acid biosynthesis. Our study provides an atlas of mRNA modifications and insights into ac4C function in plant immunity.

Knockout of phosphatidate phosphohydrolase genes confers broad‐spectrum disease resistance in plants

Knockout of phosphatidate phosphohydrolase genes confers broad‐spectrum disease resistance in plants

Low-dose of oligosaccharins boosts antiviral immunity through induction of multiple defense pathways in rice

Oligosaccharins, widely recognized as plant immunity inducers, have been applied and studied for enhancing antiviral defenses in rice over the years. However, due to the complex induction mechanism in rice, further studies are needed. In this study, we demonstrated that oligosaccharins enhanced rice resistance to southern rice black-streaked dwarf virus (SRBSDV) at both the symptomatic and molecular levels. RNA-seq analysis revealed that oligosaccharins enhanced rice antiviral defense by activating multiple defense pathways. Among them, the jasmonic acid (JA) signaling pathway, a crucial antiviral pathway in rice, was investigated in detail. Interestingly, RNA-seq data showed that genes related to JA signaling pathway were significantly induced after 1 h but not after 24 h of oligosaccharins treatment, suggesting that JA induction by oligosaccharins was rapid and sensitive. Furthermore, JA levels and sensitivity analysis showed that oligosaccharins induced JA accumulation, making treated rice plants more sensitive to methyl jasmonate (MeJA). Additionally, oligosaccharins treatment also induced a burst of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in rice. Notably, oligosaccharins demonstrated a low-dose effect, within a certain dilution range from 6000-fold to 1000-fold diluted solution of 5% oligosaccharins, with the 4000-fold diluted solution exhibiting a stronger ability to induce elevated production of JA and ROS. Moreover, the application of low-dose oligosaccharins also enhanced rice resistance to SRBSDV. These data suggest that low-dose of oligosaccharins can enhance rice antiviral defense by inducing multiple defense pathways, including the JA signaling pathway and ROS production.

A Review on Molecular Mechanism of Plant Immunity against Fungal Pathogens

The molecular mechanisms of plant immunity, with a particular focus on how plants defend themselves against fungal pathogens. Plant immunity is a complex, multi-layered system involving pattern-triggered immunity (PTI) and effector-triggered immunity (ETI), which together form a robust defense against a wide array of pathogens. Advances in genomics and transcriptomics have significantly enhanced our understanding of these immune mechanisms by identifying key resistance (R) genes and uncovering the transcriptional networks that regulate immune responses. Proteomics and metabolomics further elucidate the functional aspects of immunity, revealing how proteins and metabolites are mobilized during pathogen attack. The advent of gene editing technologies, particularly CRISPR-Cas9, has opened new avenues for enhancing plant immunity by enabling precise modifications of genes associated with disease resistance. The ever-evolving nature of fungal pathogens, driven by genetic diversity and environmental changes, poses ongoing challenges. Emerging pathogens and the breakdown of existing resistance in crops underscore the need for durable resistance strategies, which can be achieved through the pyramiding of multiple R genes, susceptibility gene knockouts, and the harnessing of beneficial plant microbiomes. As climate change exacerbates the spread and virulence of fungal pathogens, developing climate-resilient crops that can withstand both abiotic stresses and pathogen pressures is becoming increasingly important. Future research should prioritize understanding the molecular dynamics of plant-pathogen interactions, leveraging new technologies for crop improvement, and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration to address these challenges. Ultimately, translating these scientific advances into practical applications will be crucial for ensuring global food security and sustainable agricultural systems in the face of mounting environmental and biological threats.

Identifying the key motif essential for enhancing plant defense against Botrytis cinerea by β-glucanase from Bacillus velezensis LJ02

The glycosyl hydrolase β-glucanase elicits plant immune responses against pathogens and enhances plant immunity by activating signaling pathways. The specific functional domains responsible for disease prevention remain unclear. In this study, transient expression of β-glucanase significantly increased leaves resistance to Botrytis cinerea in Nicotiana benthamiana systemic leaves. Through sequence alignment and similarity analysis, five conserved motifs in the amino acid sequence of β-glucanase were identified, and five deletion mutants were generated to investigate its essential regions further. Notably, the N-terminal amino acid sites 5-54 deletion mutation of β-glucanase decreased resistance to B. cinerea infection. These results indicate that N-terminal amino acids 5-54 (N54) are crucial for β-glucanase induced N. benthamiana defense response and for enhancing resistance to B. cinerea. Further analysis using real-time quantitative fluorescent PCR (qRT-PCR) revealed a significant reduction in gene expression within the N54 region compared to that of unmutated β-glucanase. Additionally, there was a notable reduction in the relative expression levels of FRK, CYP71D20, WRKY7, WRKY8, ACRE31 and PTI genes. Therefore, the first 50 amino acids at positions 5-54 within the N-terminal domain were essential for triggering plant defense responses and enhancing resistance against B. cinerea infection. This study provides an important theoretical foundation for systematic investigation into key functional domains within β-glucanase that trigger defensive responses in plants against B. cinerea.

Chloroplast elongation factors break the growth-immunity trade-off by simultaneously promoting yield and defence.

Chloroplasts regulate plant development and immunity. Here we report that potato chloroplast elongation factors StTuA and StTuB, targeted by Phytophthora infestans RXLR effector Pi22926, positively regulate immunity and growth. Plants expressing Pi22926, or silenced for TuA/B, show increased P. infestans susceptibility and decreased photosynthesis, plant growth and tuber yield. By contrast, StTuA/B overexpression reduces susceptibility, elevates chloroplast-derived reactive oxygen species production and increases photosynthesis and potato tuber yield by enhancing chloroplast protein translation. Another plant target of Pi22926, StMAP3Kβ2, interacts with StTuB, phosphorylating it to promote its translocation into chloroplasts. However, Pi22926 attenuates StTuB association with StMAP3Kβ2 and phosphorylation. This reduces StTuB translocation into chloroplasts, leading to its proteasome-mediated turnover in the cytoplasm. We uncover new mechanisms by which a pathogen effector inhibits immunity by disrupting key chloroplast functions. This work shows that StTuA/B break the growth-immunity trade-off, promoting both disease resistance and yield, revealing the enormous potential of chloroplast biology in crop breeding.

Effect of potassium fulvate on continuous tobacco cropping soils and crop growth.

Long-term continuous cropping of tobacco causes dysbiosis of soil microbial communities, the imbalance of soil nutrients, and the increase of pathogenic bacteria, which will slow the growth and development of tobacco plants, reduce the production quality, and cause significant losses to tobacco production and tobacco farmers. The application of Potassium fulvic acid can not only provide nutrients, but also inhibit the propagation of pathogens in soil along with raising the amount of organic matter in the soil, which is an effective way to improve soil health. In this experiment, Tobacco variety SNT60 was used as the test material, and 6 treatments were set up by pot test, they were: no fertilisation control group (CK), tobacco special fertiliser (NPK), 3.45 g/kg of potassium fulvic acid fertiliser (T1), 4.65 g/kg of potassium fulvic acid fertiliser (T2), 5.85 g/kg of potassium fulvic acid fertiliser (T3), 7.05 g/kg of potassium fulvic acid fertiliser (T4), Ten replications were set up for each treatment and the soil and fertiliser were mixed and potted before transplanting, 70% as basal fertiliser and 30% as supplementary fertiliser. We also analyzed soil properties, soil microorganisms and agronomic traits of tobacco plants in different treatments to provide reference for mitigating tobacco succession barrier. The test results are as follows: 4.65 g/kg of potassium fulvic acid fertiliser (T2) treatment was the best, soil organic matter, quick nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, pH, soil catalase, soil sucrase, and soil urease content, compared to CK control, increased by 22.04%, 43.12%, 96.21%, 381.79%, 25.43%, 91.69%, 262.07% and 93.16%. In terms of microbial community, application of potassium fulvic acid fertiliser significantly increased the relative abundance of Ascomycetes, Chlorobacterium, Bacillus, Proteobacteria and Tephritobacterium in the soil. Meanwhile, 4.65 g/kg of potassium fulvic acid fertiliser (T2) promoted the growth of tobacco plants, improved leaf photosynthetic capacity, and enhanced plant disease resistance. This experiment provides practical measures to improve the microbial community of tobacco continuous cropping soils and to reduce the incidence of diseases.

Intestinal immunity in C. elegans is activated by pathogen effector-triggered aggregation of the guard protein TIR-1 on lysosome-related organelles

Toll/interleukin-1/resistance (TIR)-domain proteins with enzymatic activity are essential for immunity in plants, animals, and bacteria. However, it is not known how these proteins function in pathogen sensing in animals. We discovered that the lone enzymatic TIR-domain protein in the nematode C.elegans (TIR-1, homolog of mammalian sterile alpha and TIR motif-containing 1 [SARM1]) was strategically expressed on the membranes of a specific intracellular compartment called lysosome-related organelles. The positioning of TIR-1 on lysosome-related organelles enables intestinal epithelial cells in the nematode C.elegans to survey for pathogen effector-triggered host damage. A virulence effector secreted by the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa alkalinized and condensed lysosome-related organelles. This pathogen-induced morphological change in lysosome-related organelles triggered TIR-1 multimerization, which engaged its intrinsic NAD+ hydrolase (NADase) activity to activate the p38 innate immune pathway and protect the host against microbial intoxication. Thus, TIR-1 is a guard protein in an effector-triggered immune response, which enables intestinal epithelial cells to survey for pathogen-induced host damage.

The RING-Type E3 Ligase BOI Interacts with EXO70E2 and Mediates Its Ubiquitination in Arabidopsis.

The exocyst is a hetero-octameric complex that exhibits significant functional diversity in regulating biological processes and defense responses. In plants, the EXO70 proteins are important components of the exocyst complex and are involved in membrane trafficking, biotic and abiotic interactions, as well as cell wall formation. A previous study has indicated that a member of the EXO subfamily, EXO70E2, interacts with RIN4 to mediate plant immunity. In this study, we found that EXO70E2 interacts with the RING-type E3 ligase Botrytis susceptible1 interactor (BOI), and the C-terminal domain of BOI is necessary for its interaction with EXO70E2. Moreover, the protein level of EXO70E2 was degraded and ubiquitinated by BOI in vitro. Collectively, our study reveals a mechanism for regulating the stability of EXO70E2 by a RING-type E3 ligase BOI-mediated ubiquitination.

Complete Genome of Achromobacter xylosoxidans, a Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria from the Rhizosphere of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata [L.] Walp) Tolerant to Cucumber Mosaic Virus Infection.

Achromobacter xylosoxidans is one of the nitrogen-fixing bacteria associated with cowpea rhizosphere across Africa. Although its role in improving soil fertility and inducing systemic resistance in plants against pathogens has been documented, there is limited information on its complete genomic characteristics from cowpea roots. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of A. xylosoxidans strain DDA01 isolated from the topsoil of a field where cowpea plants tolerant to cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) were grown in Ibadan, Nigeria. The genome of DDA01 was sequenced via Illumina MiSeq and contained 6,930,067 nucleotides with 67.55% G + C content, 73 RNAs, 59 tRNAs, and 6421 protein-coding genes, including those associated with nitrogen fixation, phosphate solubilization, Indole3-acetic acid production, and siderophore activity. Eleven genetic clusters for secondary metabolites, including alcaligin, were identified. The potential of DDA01 as a plant growth-promoting bacteria with genetic capabilities to enhance soil fertility for resilience against CMV infection in cowpea is discussed. To our knowledge, this is the first complete genome of diazotrophic bacteria obtained from cowpea rhizosphere in sub-Saharan Africa, with potential implications for improved soil fertility, plant disease resistance, and food security.

Synergistic Effect of Two Peptaibols from Biocontrol Fungus Trichoderma longibrachiatum Strain 40418 on CO-Induced Plant Resistance.

Trichoderma longibrachiatum is a filamentous fungus used as a biological control agent against different plant diseases. The multifunctional secondary metabolites synthesized by Trichoderma, called peptaibols, have emerged as key elicitors in plant innate immunity. This study obtained a high-quality genome sequence for the T. longibrachiatum strain 40418 and identified two peptaibol biosynthetic gene clusters using knockout techniques. The two gene cluster products were confirmed as trilongin AIV a (11-residue) and trilongin BI (20-residue) using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Further investigations revealed that these peptaibols induce plant resistance to Pseudomonas syringae pv tomato (Pst) DC3000 infection while triggering plant immunity and cell death. Notably, the two peptaibols exhibit synergistic effects in plant-microbe signaling interactions, with trilongin BI having a predominant role. Moreover, the induction of tomato resistance against Meloidogyne incognita showed similarly promising results.

Emerging strategies in plant virus disease control: insights from the 56th meeting of the DPG working group “Viruskrankheiten der Pflanzen”

Transforming agriculture into a sustainable system includes innovative, safe, and sustainable management of virus diseases. Advances in cutting-edge biotechnological tools, such as CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated protein 9), environmental RNA interference (RNAi), and the application of natural antiviral compounds, present promising new strategies for effective virus control. Highly sensitive and validated diagnostic tools allow early detection and targeted management strategies. The 56th meeting of the Deutsche Phytomedizinische Gesellschaft (DPG) working group on "Viruskrankheiten der Pflanzen" tackled the latest developments and challenges in the field of plant virology in Germany, covering topics on genomic technologies, diagnostics and quarantine regulations, virus–host interaction, virus diversity, plant immunity, and more. A special emphasis lay on the applied side of plant virology, as here, pressing agricultural challenges have to be met. In this perspectives paper, we give a summary on the conference’s findings and highlight possibilities to derive novel strategies for disease control.