VvWRKY5 enhances white rot resistance in grape by promoting the jasmonic acid pathway

Abstract

Grape white rot is a disease caused by Coniella diplodiella (Speg.) Sacc. (Cd) can drastically reduce the production and quality of grape (Vitis vinifera). WRKY transcription factors play a vital role in the regulation of plant resistance to pathogens, but their functions in grape white rot need to be further explored. Here, we found that the expression of the WRKY IIe subfamily member VvWRKY5 was highly induced by Cd infection and jasmonic acid (JA) treatment. Transient injection and stable overexpression (in grape calli and Arabidopsis) demonstrated that VvWRKY5 positively regulated grape resistance to white rot. We also determined that VvWRKY5 regulated the JA response by directly binding to the promoters of VvJAZ2 (a JA signaling suppressor) and VvMYC2 (a JA signaling activator), thereby inhibiting and activating the transcription of VvJAZ2 and VvMYC2, respectively. Furthermore, the interaction between VvJAZ2 and VvWRKY5 enhanced the suppression and promotion of VvJAZ2 and VvMYC2 activities by VvWRKY5, respectively. When VvWRKY5 was overexpressed in grape, JA content was also increased. Overall, our results suggested that VvWRKY5 played a key role in regulating JA biosynthesis and signal transduction as well as enhancing white rot resistance in grape. Our results also provide theoretical guidance for the development of elite grape cultivars with enhanced pathogen resistance.

Acknowledgements

We thank Ying Zhang from Zhengzhou Fruit Research Institute for providing the Coniella diplodiella strain WR01. We thank Haifeng Jia from Nanjing Agricultural University for providing the ‘Gamay’ grape calli. The research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 31972368), the China Agriculture Research System (grant no. CARS-29-yc-6), the Basic research innovation capability enhancement project of provincial colleges and universities (grant no. 2021JK06), the Department of Science and Technology of Liaoning Province (grant no. 2022030723-JH5/104), and the Shenyang Science and Technology Bureau Funds (grant no. 21-116-3-27).

Author contributions

Y.G., H.L., and Z.Z. designed the research. Z.Z., C.J., and C.C. performed the experiments. Z.Z., C.J., C.C., K.S., and Y.Z. analyzed the data. Z.Z., H.L., and Y.G. wrote and modified the manuscript.

Data availability

All relevant data are available within the article and its supplementary data.

Conflict of interest statement

None declared.

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