Filamentous pathogen effectors interfering with small RNA silencing in plant hosts

Wenwu Ye, Wenbo Ma

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

25 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Filamentous eukaryotic pathogens including fungi and oomycetes are major threats of plant health. During the co-evolutionary arms race with the hosts, these pathogens have evolved a large repertoire of secreted virulence proteins, called effectors, to facilitate colonization and infection. Many effectors are believed to directly manipulate targeted processes inside the host cells; and a fundamental function of the effectors is to dampen immunity. Recent evidence suggests that the destructive oomycete pathogens in the genus Phytophthora encode RNA silencing suppressors. These effectors play an important virulence role during infection, likely through their inhibitory effect on host small RNA-mediated defense.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1-6
Number of pages6
JournalCurrent Opinion in Microbiology
Volume32
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Aug 2016

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