• Molecules and Cells
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.559-565
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• 2008

Members of the TGA family of basic domain/leucine zipper transcription factors regulate defense genes through physical interaction with NON-EXPRESSOR OF PR1 (NPR1). Of the seven TGA family members, TGA4/octopine synthase (ocs)-element-binding factor 4 (OBF4) is the least understood. Here we present evidence for a novel function of OBF4 as a regulator of flowering. We identified CONSTANS (CO), a positive regulator of floral induction, as an OBF4-interacting protein, in a yeast two-hybrid library screen. OBF4 interacts with the B-box region of CO. The abundance of OBF4 mRNA cycles with a 24 h rhythm under both long-day (LD) and short-day (SD) conditions, with significantly higher levels during the night than during the day. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays revealed that OBF4 binds to the promoter of the FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) gene, a direct target of CO. We also found that, like CO and FT, an OBF4:GUS construct was prominently expressed in the vascular tissues of leaf, indicating that OBF4 can regulate FT expression through the formation of a protein complex with CO. Taken together, our results suggest that OBF4 may act as a link between defense responses and flowering.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2015.11a
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• pp.23-23
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• 2015

Rice blast disease caused by M. oryzae is the most devastating fungal disease in rice. During the infection process, M. oryzae secretes a large number of glycosyl hydrolase (GH) proteins into the apoplast to digest host cell wall and assist fungal ingress into host tissues. In this study, we identified a novel M. oryze arabinofuranosidase B (MoAbfB) which is secreted during fungal infection. Live-cell imaging exhibited that fluorescent labeled MoAbfB was highly accumulated in fungal invasive structures such as appressorium, tips of penetration peg, biotrophic interfacial complex (BIC), as well as invasive hyphal tip. Deletion of MoAbfB mutants extended biotrophic phase followed by enhanced disease severity, whereas, over-expression of OsMoAbfB mutant induced rapid defense responses and enhanced rice resistance to M. oryzae infection. Furthermore, exogenous treatment of MoAbfB protein showed inhibition of fungal infection via priming of defense gene expression. We later found that the extract of MoAbfB degraded rice cell wall fragments could also induce host defense activation, suggesting that not MoAbfB itself but oligosaccharides (OGs) derived from MoAbfB dissolved rice cell wall elicited rice innate immunity.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2015.05a
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• pp.54-54
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• 2015

Crops lack genetic resistance to most necrotrophic soil-borne pathogens and parasitic nematodes that are ubiquitous in agroecosystems worldwide. To overcome this disadvantage, plants recruit and nurture specific group of antagonistic microorganisms from the soil microbiome to defend their roots against pathogens and other pests. The best example of this microbe-based defense of roots is observed in disease-suppressive soils in which the suppressiveness is induced by continuously growing crops that are susceptible to a pathogen. Suppressive soils occur globally yet the microbial basis of most is still poorly described. Fusarium wilt, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. fragariae is a major disease of strawberry and is naturally suppressed in Korean fields that have undergone continuous strawberry monoculture. Here we show that members of the genus Streptomyces are the specific bacterial components of the microbiome responsible for the suppressiveness that controls Fusarium wilt of strawberry. Furthermore, genome sequencing revealed that Streptomyces griseus, which produces a novel thiopetide antibiotic, is the principal species involved in the suppressiveness. Finally, chemical-genetic studies demonstrated that S. griseus antagonizes F. oxysporum by interfering with fungal cell wall synthesis. An attack by F. oxysporum initiates a defensive "cry for help" by strawberry root and the mustering of microbial defenses led by Streptomyces. These results provide a model for future studies to elucidate the basis of microbially-based defense systems and soil suppressiveness from the field to the molecular level.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 2004.10a
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• pp.48-52
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• 2004

We have found the role of rice mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAPKKK), OsEDR1, as controling hypersensitive response (HR) and increased disease resistance to rice blast fungus Magnaporthe grisea. Generation of transgenic rice plants through introduction of the over-expression construct of OsEDR1 using Agrobacterium-mediated transformation results in lesion mimic phenotype. Up-regulation of defense mechanism was detected through detection of increased transcription level of rice PBZ1 and PR1a. Inoculation of rice blast fungus on the lesion mimic transgenic lines displayed significantly increased resistance. The disease symptoms were arrested like HR responses which are commonly detected in the incompatible interactions. High accumulation of phenolic compounds around developing lesions was detected under UV light. There was variation among transgenic lines on the timing of lesion progression as well as the lesion numbers on the rice leaves. Transgenic lines with few lesions also show increased resistance as well as equal amount of grain yields compared to that of wild type rice cultivar Nipponbare. This is the first report of the MAPKKK as a positive regulator molecule on defense mechanism through inducing HR-like cell death lesion mimic phenotype. The application of OsEDR1 is highly expected for the development of resistant cultivars against rice pathogens.

• Mycobiology
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.311-318
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• 2015

Culture filtrates of six different edible mushroom species were screened for antimicrobial activity against tomato wilt bacteria Ralstonia solanacearum B3. Hericium erinaceus, Lentinula edodes (Sanjo 701), Grifola frondosa, and Hypsizygus marmoreus showed antibacterial activity against the bacteria. Water, n-butanol, and ethyl acetate extracts of spent mushroom substrate (SMS) of H. erinaceus exhibited high antibacterial activity against different phytopathogenic bacteria: Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, R. solanacearum, Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae, X. campestris pv. campestris, X. axonopodis pv. vesicatoria, X. axonopodis pv. citiri, and X. axonopodis pv. glycine. Quantitative real-time PCR revealed that water extracts of SMS (WESMS) of H. erinaceus induced expressions of plant defense genes encoding ${\beta}$-1,3-glucanase (GluA) and pathogenesis-related protein-1a (PR-1a), associated with systemic acquired resistance. Furthermore, WESMS also suppressed tomato wilt disease caused by R. solanacearum by 85% in seedlings and promoted growth (height, leaf number, and fresh weight of the root and shoot) of tomato plants. These findings suggest the WESMS of H. erinaceus has the potential to suppress bacterial wilt disease of tomato through multiple effects including antibacterial activity, plant growth promotion, and defense gene induction.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Biotechnology Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.82-82
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• 2003

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 1999.04a
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• pp.2-3
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• 1999

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Sericultural Science Conference
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.79-80
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• 2002

No Abstract, See Full Text

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.193-202
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• 2007

Typical susceptible symptoms of the bacterial pustule disease caused by Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. glycines are pustule and chlorotic haloes that usually occur in leaves of Glycine max plants. The soybean genotype 'PI96188' showed an atypical response to all tested races X. axonopodis pv. glycines, accompanied with necrosis without chlorotic haloes on the underside of the necrotic symptoms. X. axonopodis pv. glycines 8ra grew to levels from 10 to 100 fold lower on PI96188 than on susceptible cultivar Jinjoo1, but 10-fold higher than on the resistant cultivar CNS. The chlorophyll content in PI96188 leaves remained unchanged until 12 days after bacterial infection. Ultrastructural observation showed that the infected leaf cells of PI96188 had intact normal chloroplasts compared to those of the susceptible cultivar Jinjoo1. Chloroplast degradation or the absence of chloroplasts in cells of the infected tissues was observed in Jinjoo1. Senescence-related ACS7 gene was significantly induced in PI96188 compared to those in Jinjoo1 at 2 days after inoculation. While photosynthesis-related rbcS gene showed the dramatic change in Jinjoo1, this gene was constitutively expressed in PI96188. However, expression of the defense-related genes, such as peroxidase and isoflavone synthase in the infected PI96188 leaves was similar to that in Jinjoo1. Together, these results suggest that the novel necrotic symptom in PI96188 is a kind of resistant response different from a typical hypersensitive response in the resistant genotypes.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.85-91
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• 2003

Pre-treatment with DL-3-aminobutyric acid (BABA) in the cucumber plants caused the decrease of disease severity after inoculation with anthracnose pathogen Colletotrichum orbiculare. In this study, ultrastructures of the vascular bundle and the infection structures in the leaves of BABA-treated as well as untreated cucumber plants were observed after inoculation with the anthracnose pathogen by electron microscopy. The ultrastructures of vascular bundle in the leaves of BABA-treated plants were similar to those of the untreated plants except plasmodesmata. In the BABA-treated plants, the plasmodesmata were more numerous than in the untreated plants, suggesting that the BABA treatment may cause the active transfer of metabolites through the vascular bundle. In the leaves of untreated plants, the fungal hyphae were spread widely in the plant tissues at 5 days after pathogen inoculation. Most cellular organelles in the hyphae were intact, indicating a compatible interaction between the plant and the parasite. In contrast, in the leaves of BABA pre-treated plants the growth of most hyphae was restricted to the epidermal cell layer at 5 days after inoculation. Most hyphae cytoplasm and nucleoplasm was electron dense or the intracellular organelles were degenerated. The cell walls of some plant cells became thick at the site adjacent to the intercellular hyphae, indicating a mechanical defense reaction of the plant cells against the fungal attack. Furthermore, hypersensitive reaction (HR) of the epidermal cells was often observed, in which the intracellular hyphae were degenerated. Based on these results it is suggested that BABA causes the enhancement of defense mechanisms in the cucumber plants such as cell wall apposition or HR against the invasion of C. orbiculare.