Insights into molecular basis of disease susceptibility and resistance against Phymatotrichum root rot using multi-omics approach
P. KANKANALA (1), P. Jones (2), D. Weighill (2), D. Jacobson (2), K. Mysore (1) (1) The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, U.S.A.; (2) Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN; The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, U.S.A.

Phymatotrichum root rot (PRR), also comm known as cotton root rot/Texas root rot, is caused by the ascomycete Phymatotrichopsis omnivora (Duggar) Hennebert. Over 2,000 dicotyledonous plant species are susceptible and almost all monocotyledonous plants and few cruciferous plants are known to be resistant/tolerant to PRR under field conditions. In Southern Oklahoma and Texas this pathogen limits the production of alfalfa and cotton which are valuable forage and fiber crops, respectively. The fact that this necrotrophic fungus is currently genetically intractable has posed a major challenge to understand the molecular basis underlying its pathogenicity. To better understand the mechanisms at play during infections, we are generating integrated multi-omics datasets in order to build network models across infection time courses of three different plant species. The three model plant species – Medicago truncatula (susceptible), Arabidopsis thalaiana (tolerant) and Brachypodium distachyon (resistant) were infected with P. omnivora. Transcriptome and metabolome analyses were done at 5 different time points during the fungal infection process. The results from this analyses and the insights into the molecular basis of PRR susceptibility and resistance using biological networks will be presented.

Abstract Number: P12-397
Session Type: Poster