Indian scientists close to finding a solution of a serious rice plant disease, which causes huge paddy crop loss world over
Indian scientists are very close to developing a vaccine to reduce huge rice crop loss all over the world due to Xoo endemic—a highly infectious disease prevalent in paddy crop world over. Once the team succeeds, it would control the Xoo endemic which is as infectious and killing for the crop as COVID-19 for the human population.The scientists
of Centre for Plant Molecular Biology (CPMB), Osmania University, Hyderabad,
lead by Tayi is developing new disease control strategies, which they can use
as vaccines that activate the rice immune system. The Scientists has uncovered
the mechanism by
which a bacterium
called Xoo (Xanthomonas oryzaepv. oryzae) is a very serious rice plant diseases that cause a serious bacterial leaf
blight disease in rice. It interacts
with rice plant and cause disease, Claims the Ministry of Science and
Technology which looks after the Centre.
Dr Tayi
Lavanya, a recipient
of DST-Inspire Faculty Fellowship, with her research group has been working to identify and develop few
molecules which are derived from either the Xoo bacterium or from the infected
rice cell walls. “The team is developing new disease control strategies which
they can use as vaccines that activate the rice immune system and provide
resistance to rice plants from subsequent infections by pathogens,” The
Ministry said.
Xanthomonas
oryzaepv. oryzae, or commonly known as Xoo infection, has been causing huge
yield losses to rice cultivation throughout the world. Treatment of rice with
cellulase, a cell wall degrading enzyme secreted by Xoo induces rice immune
responses and protects rice from subsequent infections by Xoo.
The Indian
scientists have already carried
out biochemical and functional studies on plant cell wall degrading enzymes
secreted by Xoo, which has provided key insights into the mechanisms by which
the Xoo pathogen interacts with rice plant and causes disease.
Using the leads
obtained from her Ph. D work, Dr Lavanya zeroed in on few molecules derived from either the Xoo bacterium and from
infected rice cell walls which they hope to develop into vaccines. Currently, her
team is working on a cellulase protein secreted
by Xoo. This cellulase protein has the features of a typical vaccine as it is a
potent elicitor of rice immune responses. Pre-treatment of rice plants with
this protein provides resistance to rice against subsequent Xoo infection.
In order to
study how exactly this protein induces the rice immune system, her group is
testing whether any surface exposed peptide of this cellulase protein is being
recognized by the rice immune system leading to the activation of immune
responses. They are also exploring whether the rice cell wall degradation
products (sugars) that are released by the activity of this cellulase protein
on rice cell walls elicit rice immunity. The elicitor molecules
(peptide/sugars), once identified, will be used as a vaccine to activate the
rice immune system and induce resistance in rice plants to subsequent
infections by pathogens.
The Ministry
claimed that so far, improving the resistance of rice plants by introducing
Resistance “R” genes has been the best way to control this disease which
involves breeding or gene manipulation techniques that are laborious and
time-consuming. Also, the introduced of “R” genes provide only race-specific
resistance that will prevent infections by only specific strains of Xoo. But
the elicitor molecule that will be identified in this work will have the potential
to induce a broad-spectrum resistance, which will be effective not only against
Xoo but also against other pathogens.
According to Dr Lavanya, this study will reveal novel elicitors of rice defence responses and provide new knowledge about the basic aspects of plant-pathogen interactions that might lead to new ways of reducing yield losses.
ends
s for a crop
that at least half of the world’s population depends on.
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