Zhennan Xu, Zhiqiang Zhou, Zixiang Cheng, Yu Zhou, Feifei Wang, Mingshun Li, Gongjian Li, Wenxue Li, Qingguo Du, Ke Wang, Xin Lu, Yuxin Tai1, Runyi Chen, Zhuanfang Hao, Jienan Han, Yanping Chen, Qingchang Meng, Xiaomin Kong, Shuanggui Tie, Chunhua Mu, Weibin Song, Zhenhua Wang, Hongjun Yong, Degui Zhang, Haiyang Wang, Jianfeng Weng, Xinhai Li. 

Nature Plants, 2023, IF 18

DOI:10.1038/s41477-023-01514-w

ABSTRACT:

Maize rough dwarf disease (MRDD), caused by maize rough dwarf virus (MRDV) or rice black-streaked dwarf virus (RBSDV), seriously threatens worldwide production of all major cereal crops, including maize, rice,wheat and barley. Here we report fine mapping and cloning of a previously reported major quantitative trait locus (QTL) (qMrdd2) for RBSDV resistance in maize. Subsequently, we show that qMrdd2 encodes a G2-like transcription factor named ZmGLK36 that promotes resistance to RBSDV by enhancing jasmonic acid ( JA) biosynthesis and JA-mediated defence response. We identify a 26-bp indel located in the 5′ UTR of ZmGLK36 that contributes to differential expression and resistance to RBSDV in maize inbred lines. Moreover, we show that ZmDBF2, an AP2/EREBP family transcription factor, directly binds to the 26-bp indel and represses ZmGLK36 expression. We further demonstrate that ZmGLK36 plays a conserved role in conferring resistance to RBSDV in rice and wheat using transgenic or marker-assisted breeding approaches. Our results provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of RBSDV resistance and effective strategies to breed RBSDV-resistant cereal crops.