title: Cytological and Molecular Characterization of ZmWAK-Mediated Head-Smut Resistance in Maize.
abstract: Head smut, caused by the fungal pathogen Sporisorium reilianum, poses a threat to maize production worldwide. ZmWAK, a cell wall-associated receptor kinase, confers quantitative resistance to head smut disease. Here, two near-isogenic lines (NILs), susceptible line Huangzao4 and its ZmWAK-converted resistant line Huangzao4R, were used to decipher the role of ZmWAK in head smut resistance. Cytological and molecular characterization in response to S. reilianum infection was compared between two NILs. Upon S. reilianum infection, the growth of pathogen hyphae was severely arrested in the ZmWAK-converted resistant line Huangzao4R, relative to its susceptible parental line Huangzao4. Infected cells exhibited apoptosis-like features in Huangzao4R and hyphae were sequestered within dead cells, whereas pathogen invasion caused autophagy in Huangzao4, which failed to prevent hyphal spreading. Integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis indicated that ZmWAK functions as a hub in the trade-off between growth and defense, whereby ZmWAK promotes cell growth in the absence of the pathogen and switches to a defense response upon S. reilianum attack. These findings shed light on an elegant regulatory mechanism governed by ZmWAK in the trade-off between growth and head smut defense.
authors.affiliation: 1 National Maize Improvement Centre of China, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.|3 Crops Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Crops Genetic & Improvement, Guangdong 510640, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: 1 National Maize Improvement Centre of China, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Boqi
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: 1 National Maize Improvement Centre of China, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Weiliang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zuo
authors.affiliation: 2 Maize Research Institute, Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Gongzhuling, Jilin 136100, People's Republic of China; and.
authors.forename: Yuexian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xing
authors.affiliation: 1 National Maize Improvement Centre of China, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Suvimon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Konlasuk
authors.affiliation: 2 Maize Research Institute, Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Gongzhuling, Jilin 136100, People's Republic of China; and.
authors.forename: Guoqing
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: 1 National Maize Improvement Centre of China, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Qianqian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: 1 National Maize Improvement Centre of China, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jianrong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: 1 National Maize Improvement Centre of China, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Mingliang
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Xu
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics; D001343:Autophagy / Q000235:genetics; D060467:Disease Resistance / Q000235:genetics*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling / Q000379:methods; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions; D025301:Hyphae / Q000502:physiology; D055432:Metabolomics / Q000379:methods; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000382:microbiology; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D014587:Ustilaginales / Q000502:physiology; D003313:Zea mays / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D011494:Protein Kinases