Researchers from the Plant-Parasite Interactions group at the Crop Science Centre have made a significant breakthrough in understanding how plant-parasitic nematodes infect crops. These tiny parasitic worms pose a serious threat to global food security by secreting special proteins, called effectors, from their pharyngeal gland cells. These effectors help the nematodes suppress the plant’s immune system and create a feeding organ to draw nutrition from the host plant.
Until now, there has been no comprehensive identification and characterisation of the effectors used by any plant-parasitic nematode. To address this, the multi-institutional team of scientists behind this research developed advanced techniques for isolating gland cells and analysing their gene activity. They focused on the cyst nematode Heterodera schachtii at three key life stages. Their research identified 717 effector genes, including 269 genes related to known effectors and 448 new ones. This is the most detailed “effectorome” of a plant-parasitic nematode to date.
Read more: Uncovering the effectorome: new insights into plant-parasitic nematode infection strategies
Reference: Molloy B. et al., 'The origin, deployment, and evolution of a plant-parasitic nematode effectorome', PLOS Pathogens, July 2024, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1012395.
Image: The accompanying confocal 3D projection of DAPI- and HCR in situ-labelled pre-parasitic Heterodera schachtii visualises transcripts of parasitism effectors made within the gland cells. Image source: Dr Alexis L Sperling.