Biosynthesis, transport and exudation of 1,4-benzoxazin-3-ones as determinants of plant biotic interactions
Final Report Abstract
The establishment of a suitable biotic niche is essential for plant survival and agricultural productivity. One important mechanism by which plants shape their environment is the release of phytochemicals. Low molecular weight compounds in particular can initiate the interaction with beneficial microbes in the soil and ward off herbivores. However, the same signaling molecules may also be exploited by specialized pests and pathogens. A detailed understanding of their biosynthesis, transport and release will be essential to disentangle these seemingly contradicting effects and to harness the full potential of secondary metabolite exudation in sustainable cropping systems. We united the expertise of different research groups across Europe to study the molecular basis of 1,4-benzoxazin-3-one (BX) exudation in maize. Previous work by the consortium members has identified BXs as important resistance factors in maize and other grasses and has elucidated their biosynthesis in detail. In this project, we created an advanced toolkit extracellular plant-environment interactions to study the molecular basis and biological relevance of BX exudation. A comprehensive population of maize genotypes that are altered in BX biosynthesis has been established by interrupting or enhancing the expression of important biosynthetic enzymes. Targeted and untargeted reference methods to identify and quantify BX production, storage, exudation and transformation have been established using HPLC-MS, and the mechanisms and genetic basis of BX exudation have been investigated by phytochemically guided QTL-mapping. Furthermore, the role of extracellular BXs in the interaction with the soil microbiome, plant growth promoting bacteria, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, root herbivores and leaf-feeding aphids has been analyzed. Taken together, our project has substantially increased our knowledge about the biological relevance of secondary metabolite exudation. It has furthermore provided an array of new tools and resources, including transgenic plants and mutants, analytical methods as well as molecular and microbial markers for the research community.
Publications
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2015, “Mechanism of benzoxazinoid exudation by maize roots”, in the 57th Annual Maize Genetics Conference, St Charles, Illinois, USA
Niculaes, Claudiu; Robert, Christelle; Anders, Iwona; Hu, Lingfei; Lori, Martina; Huttl, Regina; Bauer, Eva; Erb, Matthias; Frey, Monika
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”Chemical defence below ground: into the mechanism of benzoxazinoid exudation”, in Botanikertagung 2015, Freising, Germany
Niculaes, Claudiu; Robert, Christelle; Bauer, Eva; Erb, Matthias; Gierl, Alfons; Frey, Monika
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Biosynthesis of 8-O-methylated benzoxazinoid defense compounds in maize. The Plant Cell 28, no. 7 (2016): 1682-1700
Handrick, Vinzenz, Christelle AM Robert, Kevin R. Ahern, Shaoqun Zhou, Ricardo AR Machado, Daniel Maag, Gaetan Glauser ... & Matthias Erb, Tobias G. Koellner
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(2017) Alterations of the Benzoxazinoid Profiles of Uninjured Maize Seedlings During Freezing, Storage, and Lyophilization. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 65, 4103-4110
Pedersen HA, Heinrichson K and Fomsgaard IS
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(2017) Biphenyl Columns Provide Good Separation of the Glucosides of DIMBOA and DIM(2)BOA. Natural Product Communications, 12, 1033-1036
Pedersen HA, Steffensen SK, Heinrichson K and Fomsgaard IS
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2017. Comprehensive metabolite profiling of non-sterile rhizosphere soil. The Plant Journal
Pétriacq P, Williams A, Cotton A, McFarlane AE, Rolfe SA, Ton J
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(2018) Monitoring local MBOA concentrations under young maize plants using PDMS tubing. ACS national meeting, spring 2018
Pedersen HA, Heinrichson K and Fomsgaard IS
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Transformations of benzoxazinoids during sample handling and extraction. ACS national meeting, spring 2018
Pedersen HA, Heinrichson K and Fomsgaard IS
