The Effects of WRKY Genes in the Development of Magnaporthe oryzae-induced Blight in Rice

Abstract

Blast disease induced by Magnaporthe oryzae (M. oryzae) leads to a reduction in rice yield, and a close relationship between the WRKY gene and M. oryzae infection of rice has been found in many studies. However, whether the WRKY gene can be regulated to inhibit M. oryzae from infecting rice is still unclear. Transcriptomic and epigenomic assessments revealed that M. oryzae regulates WRKY genes in rice infection. Overexpression of three OsWRKYs in rice inoculated with M. oryzae strains revealed that OsWRKY47 has an important role to play in M. oryzae resistance.Furthermore, the interaction of OsIMα1a with Os­WRKY62 showed that OsWRKY62.1 plays a negative regulatory role downstream of OsIMα1a in defense against M. oryzae. On the other hand, in rice carrying the Pi9 gene, OsWRKY62 also plays a negative role in de­fense against compatible strains of M. oryzae. Finally, rice disease resistance was enhanced by overexpressing os­wrky6 and oswrky46 to regulate RIXI. This review aims to stimulate further research on WRKY genes to suppress M. oryzae yield damage in rice to assure global hunger and nutritional security.