Wheat Blast and Fusarium Head Blight Display Contrasting Interaction Patterns on Ears of Wheat Genotypes Differing in Resistance.

The interaction of wheat with two ear pathogens, Magnaporthe wheat blast (MWB) and Fusarium graminearum (Fusarium head blight, FHB), was studied on the phenotypic, histological, and gene expression level. Most of the 27 wheat cultivars inoculated with MWB and F. graminearum displayed inverse disease responses to blast and FHB infection. Two cultivars, Milan and Sumai 3, were selected expressing converse disease phenotypes to blast (Milan, R)/(Sumai 3, S) and FHB (Milan, S)/(Sumai 3, R). Confocal laser scanning microscopy revealed early (12 h postinoculation) colonization of the spikelets by MWB similarly on both cultivars, while F. graminearum infected anthers of the susceptible cultivar earlier. Both pathogens grew much faster in the rachilla of susceptible than resistant cultivars, indicating that resistance is mainly expressed in this part connecting the spikelet with the rachis. In general, O2(-) and H2O2 levels were unrelated to disease expression in the four studied interactions. The differential disease phenotypes, fungal spread in the rachis, and colonization patterns in the spikelets were confirmed by distinct gene expression patterns. Among the eight genes analyzed, seven were more strongly induced by FHB than by blast. Genes for chitinase (Chi2), β-1,3-glucanase (PR2), a plant defensin homolog (PRPI), and peroxidase (Pox2) were strongly upregulated in Milan in response to both pathogens, while PR2 and PR5 (thaumatin-like protein) were transiently triggered by MWB on both cultivars. Upregulation of cinnamoyl-CoA reductase (CCR), cytochrome P450 (CYP709C1), and UDP-glycosyl transferase (UGT) were more prominent in ears infected with F. graminearum, while upregulation of UGT was higher in Sumai 3 when infected with either pathogen. Cultivar resistance to FHB was reflected by clearly higher expression levels of UGT and CYP709C1 in Sumai 3. The differential responses of wheat to the two ear pathogens demonstrated in this study makes it unlikely that common resistance genes exist for control of FHB and blast, suggesting the need to stack many genes associated with resistance in breeding programs for multiple resistance.