ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Pathogen Interactions
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1604512
This article is part of the Research TopicInvestigating the Elements of Plant Defense Mechanisms Within Plant Immune Responses Against Pathogens, Volume IIView all 10 articles
Transcriptomics combined with physiological analysis provide insights into the mechanism of resistance to Coleosporium bletiae in Bletilla striata
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guangxi Institute of Botany, Guilin, China
- 2Guilin Sanjin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Guilin, Guangxi Zhuang Region, China
- 3Guangxi Yifang Tianjiang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Guilin, China
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Bletilla striata (Orchidaceae) is a valuable traditional Chinese medicinal plant prized for its dried rhizomes. However, its cultivation faces significant challenges from leaf rust disease caused by Coleosporium bletiae, which causes substantial yield losses. To investigate host resistance mechanisms, we compared rust-resistant and susceptible B. striata accessions through integrated transcriptomic and physiological analyses. Phenotypic observations revealed that while both resistant and susceptible plants developed rust spores by 2 days post-inoculation (dpi), the resistant accession exhibited significantly slower progression of spore stack formation and lesion expansion on abaxial leaf surfaces over time. Integrated transcriptomic and physiological analyses revealed that rust-resistant material of B. striata accessions exhibited faster and stronger defense responses to pathogen infection compared to susceptible plants. These responses were characterized by significant up-regulation of DEGs associated with antioxidant defense systems, secondary metabolite biosynthesis, JA, SA and BR signaling pathways; concurrent down-regulation of DEGs involved in cell wall remodeling and calcium-mediated signaling. Furthermore, rust pathogen inoculation triggered rapid physiological responses in resistant plants, including enhanced activity of defense-related enzymes (CAT, PAL, β-1,3-glucanase and chitinase) and early accumulation of osmolytes (soluble sugars, soluble proteins, and proline). These coordinated molecular and biochemical responses effectively restricted pathogen colonization and spread. These findings delineate the molecular basis of rust resistance in B. striata, identifying key regulatory nodes in defense pathways that could be targeted through precision breeding or genetic engineering to develop durable resistance against C. bletilla.
Keywords: Bletilla striata, Rust pathogen, Transcriptomics, Physiological analysis, resistant and susceptible material
Received: 02 Apr 2025; Accepted: 13 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Liu, Lu, Wu, Lu, Qin, Zou, Xia, Yang and Qiu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Yanni Yang, Guangxi Institute of Botany, Guilin, China
Shuo Qiu, Guangxi Institute of Botany, Guilin, China
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