MADS-Box Transcription Factor SsMADS Is Involved in Regulating Growth and Virulence in Sclerotinia sclerotiorum

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Xiaoyan Qu²  Baodong Yu¹  Jinliang Liu²  Xianghui Zhang²  Guihua Li²  Dongjing Zhang²  Le Li²  Xueliang Wang²  Lu Wang²  Jingyuan Chen²  Wenhui Mu²  Hongyu Pan² 

[1] Department of Emergency, China-Japan Union Hospital, Jilin University, Changchun 130033, China; E-Mail:;College of Plant Science, Jilin University, Changchun 130062, China; E-Mails:

关键词: Sclerotinia sclerotiorum;    RNA interference;    transcription factor;    MADS-box;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms15058049

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

MADS-box proteins, a well-conserved family of transcription factors in eukaryotic organisms, specifically regulate a wide range of cellular functions, including primary metabolism, cell cycle, and cell identity. However, little is known about roles of the MADS-box protein family in the fungal pathogen Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. In this research, the S. sclerotiorum MADS-box gene SsMADS was cloned; it encodes a protein that is highly similar to Mcm1 orthologs from Saccharomyces cerevisiae and other fungi, and includes a highly conserved DNA-binding domain. MADS is a member of the MADS box protein SRF (serum response factor) lineage. SsMADS function was investigated using RNA interference. Silenced strains were obtained using genetic transformation of the RNA interference vectors pS1-SsMADS and pSD-SsMADS. SsMADS expression levels in silenced strains were analyzed using RT-PCR. The results showed that SsMADS mRNA expression in these silenced strains was reduced to different degrees, and growth rate in these silenced strains was significantly decreased. Infecting tomato leaflets with silenced strains indicated that SsMADS was required for leaf pathogenesis in a susceptible host. Our results suggest that the MADS-box transcription factor SsMADS is involved in S. sclerotiorum growth and virulence.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland