Investigate the role of small RNAs of a necrotrophic fungal pathogen B. cinerea in suppressing host Immunity

灰葡萄孢是一种成功的真菌病原体，可以感染200多种植物。到目前为止，没有宿主对B产生抗性。已鉴定出灰霉病。葡萄孢属使用相当复杂的策略来感染宿主植物;然而，其成功的分子机制还不清楚。小RNA（small RNA，sRNA）介导的RNA干扰（RNA interference，RNAi）是一种保守的基因沉默机制，以序列特异性方式抑制基因表达。RNAi在病原真菌中的研究还不够深入，sRNA在宿主致病中的作用还没有在真菌病原体中探索。基于初步数据，研究人员假设一些葡萄孢sRNA被递送到宿主细胞中，并作为一类新型的毒力效应子通过劫持宿主RNAi机制来抑制宿主免疫反应。本项目旨在鉴定和功能表征这些来自感染拟南芥（一种模式植物）和番茄的葡萄孢菌衍生的sRNA，这些sRNA可能靶向具有免疫功能的宿主基因。宿主靶基因在宿主防御反应中的作用也将被研究。该项目将揭示成功的病原体用于抑制宿主免疫的新策略。该项目的成果将真正具有变革性，并将阐明有毒真菌病原体致病性的分子机制。这一基础性发现将有望为病原体与宿主相互作用领域和作物病害管理开辟新的视角。该项目将为本科生、研究生和博士后研究人员提供跨学科培训机会。作为一名女教师，调查员将担任女性代表性不足的少数民族高中生的导师。这些学生将在她的实验室接受植物分子生物学的暑期培训。该研究旨在激发学生对农业和植物科学的兴趣，并最终帮助为UCR和其他学院提供高质量的学生。

Botrytis cinerea is a successful fungal pathogen that can infect more than 200 plant species. So far, no host resistance to B. cinerea has been identified. Botrytis uses rather sophisticated strategies to infect host plants; however, the molecular mechanisms of its success are not well understood. Small RNA (sRNA)-mediated RNA interference (RNAi), is a conserved gene silencing mechanism that suppresses gene expression in a sequence specific manner. RNAi has not been well studied in pathogenic fungi, and the roles of sRNAs in host pathogenesis have not been explored in fungal pathogens. Based on the preliminary data, the investigator has hypothesized that some Botrytis sRNAs are delivered into host cells and function as a novel class of virulence effectors to suppress host immune responses by hijacking host RNAi machinery. This project aims to identify and functionally characterize these Botrytis-derived sRNAs from infected Arabidopsis (a model plant) and tomato, which can potentially target host genes with putative function in immunity. The role of the host target genes in host defense responses will also be examined. This project would reveal a novel strategy that successful pathogens employ to suppress host immunity. The output of this project would be truly transformative and would shed light on the molecular mechanisms of the pathogenicity of virulent fungal pathogens. Such a fundamental discovery would promise to open new perspectives in the pathogen-host interaction field and crop disease management.This project will provide interdisciplinary training opportunities for undergraduates, graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. As a female faculty, the investigator will serve as a mentor to female underrepresented minority high school students. These students will receive summer training in plant molecular biology in her lab. The investigator seeks to stimulate student interest in agriculture and plant sciences and ultimately help deliver high quality students to UCR and other colleges.