Microbe-induced gene silencing targeting <i>VdEno</i> of <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> for the control of cotton Verticillium wilt.

Wen TIAN; Qianye GUO; Qing SHUAI; Qingyan LIU; Huishan GUO; Jianhua ZHAO

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Microbe-induced gene silencing targeting VdEno of Verticillium dahliae for the control of cotton Verticillium wilt.

Author: Wen TIAN ¹ ; Qianye GUO ¹ ; Qing SHUAI ¹ ; Qingyan LIU ¹ ; Huishan GUO ¹ ; Jianhua ZHAO ¹
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1. State Key Laboratory of Microbial Diversity and Innovative Utilization, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
Publication Type:Journal Article
Keywords: RNAi; Trichoderma harzianum; cotton Verticillium wilt; microbe-induced gene silencing (MIGS); sRNA
MeSH: Gossypium/microbiology*; Plant Diseases/prevention & control*; Gene Silencing; Ascomycota/genetics*; RNA Interference; RNA, Double-Stranded/genetics*; Hypocreales/genetics*; RNA, Small Interfering/genetics*; Verticillium/genetics*; Fungal Proteins/genetics*
From: Chinese Journal of Biotechnology 2025;41(10):3790-3800
CountryChina
Language:Chinese
Abstract: Small RNAs (sRNAs), the key components of RNA interference (RNAi) or RNA silencing, can mediate cell-autonomous gene silencing and function as signaling molecules across species. Microbe-induced gene silencing (MIGS), which is based on interspecies RNAi, is an effective approach for controlling fungal diseases in crops. The enolase gene VdEno is essential for the growth and development of the fungal pathogen Verticillium dahliae, which causes cotton Verticillium wilt. In this study, we engineered Trichoderma harzianum (Th) to express the double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) targeting VdEno. The engineered strain Th-VdEnoi successfully generated VdEno-specific small interfering RNA (siVdEno). We further confirmed that Th-VdEnoi effectively induced VdEno silencing at the translational level. The results of crop protection assays revealed that the cotton plants co-inoculated with V. dahliae (strain V592) and Th-VdEnoi presented significantly reduced disease severity and lower fungal biomass in their roots than the control plants inoculated with V. dahliae alone or with V. dahliae and Th-GFPi (a control strain expressing GFP-targeting dsRNA). Collectively, our findings demonstrate that VdEno is an effective target for controlling cotton Verticillium wilt and confirm that MIGS is a promising strategy for managing soil-borne fungal pathogens in crops. MIGS provides strong technical support for reducing the application of conventional chemical pesticides, developing eco-friendly biopesticides, and facilitating the sustainable development of agriculture.