Submit to Metabolites Review for Metabolites Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser

Metabolomics in Plant Defence

Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of Metabolites (ISSN 2218-1989). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Metabolism".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 March 2021) | Viewed by 29993

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Victoria Pastor

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Departament de Ciències Agràries i del Medi Natural, Campus del Riu Sec, Metabolic Integration and Cell Signalling Group, Universitat Jaume I (UJI), E-12071-Castelló de la Plana, Spain
Interests: plant–microbe interaction; plant-induced resistance; defence priming; metabolomics

Dr. Pierre Pétriacq

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

UMR Biologie du Fruit et Pathologie, Université de Bordeaux, INRAE, F-33140 Villenave d’Ornon, France
Interests: plant biochemistry; redox metabolism; stress responses; metabolomics; mass spectrometry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

As sessile organisms, plants must adjust their metabolisms quickly to respond properly to the changing environment, such as pathogenic threads. Plant immunity is orchestrated by multiple events, and metabolites exert an important role in the final output of the plant-microbe interaction. The implementation of -omics in plant science has transformed the landscape in phytopathological studies. Specifically, metabolomics is a powerful systems biology tool that gathers integrative information from different biological levels. It is thus a great approach to study the functional aspects of plant–pathogen interactions.

This Special Issue will include but not be limited to research papers, reviews, technical advances, opinions that focus on the functional metabolites involved in plant–biotic interactions, including symbionts, multiway interactions, crosstalk of biotic–abiotic relationships. Dynamic aspects of metabolomics such as flux analysis and metabolic modeling and the pressing challenges of the annotation and identification of metabolites and host vs. pathogen metabolome distinction are considered of major interest.

Dr. Victoria Pastor
Dr. Pierre Pétriacq
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Metabolites is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Functional metabolomics
Metabolites
Plant defenses
Plant–microbe/pest interaction
Data processing
Targeted metabolomics
Untargeted metabolomics

Published Papers (9 papers)

Download All Papers

Order results

Result details

Show export options Show export options

Select all

Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

22 pages, 2654 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Metabolomics and Dual RNA-Sequencing on Root Nodules Revealed New Cellular Functions Controlled by Paraburkholderia phymatum NifA

by Paula Bellés-Sancho, Martina Lardi, Yilei Liu, Leo Eberl, Nicola Zamboni, Aurélien Bailly and Gabriella Pessi

Metabolites 2021, 11(7), 455; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo11070455 - 15 Jul 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2838

Abstract

Paraburkholderia phymatum STM815 is a nitrogen-fixing endosymbiont that nodulate the agriculturally important Phaseolus vulgaris and several other host plants. We previously showed that the nodules induced by a STM815 mutant of the gene encoding the master regulator of nitrogen fixation NifA showed no nitrogenase activity (Fix⁻) and increased in number compared to P. vulgaris plants infected with the wild-type strain. To further investigate the role of NifA during symbiosis, nodules from P. phymatum wild-type and nifA mutants were collected and analyzed by metabolomics and dual RNA-Sequencing, allowing us to investigate both host and symbiont transcriptome. Using this approach, several metabolites’ changes could be assigned to bacterial or plant responses. While the amount of the C₄-dicarboxylic acid succinate and of several amino acids was lower in Fix⁻ nodules, the level of indole-acetamide (IAM) and brassinosteroids increased. Transcriptome analysis identified P. phymatum genes involved in transport of C₄-dicarboxylic acids, carbon metabolism, auxin metabolism and stress response to be differentially expressed in absence of NifA. Furthermore, P. vulgaris genes involved in autoregulation of nodulation (AON) are repressed in nodules in absence of NifA potentially explaining the hypernodulation phenotype of the nifA mutant. These results and additional validation experiments suggest that P. phymatum STM815 NifA is not only important to control expression of nitrogenase and related enzymes but is also involved in regulating its own auxin production and stress response. Finally, our data indicate that P. vulgaris does sanction the nifA nodules by depleting the local carbon allocation rather than by mounting a strong systemic immune response to the Fix⁻ rhizobia. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

11 pages, 4251 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Metabolic Mechanism of Plant Defense against Rice Blast Induced by Probenazole

by Zhaochen Wu, Guozhen Wang, Borui Zhang, Tan Dai, Anyu Gu, Xiaolin Li, Xingkai Cheng, Pengfei Liu, Jianjun Hao and Xili Liu

Metabolites 2021, 11(4), 246; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo11040246 - 16 Apr 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2518

Abstract

The probenazole fungicide is used for controlling rice blast (Magnaporthe grisea) primarily by inducing disease resistance of the plant. To investigate the mechanism of induced plant defense, rice seedlings were treated with probenazole at 15 days post emergence, and non-treated plants were used for the control. The plants were infected with M. grisea 5 days after chemical treatment and incubated in a greenhouse. After 7 days, rice seedlings were sampled. The metabolome of rice seedlings was chemically extracted and analyzed using gas chromatography and mass spectrum (GC-MS). The GC-MS data were processed using analysis of variance (ANOVA), principal component analysis (PCA) and metabolic pathway elucidation. Results showed that probenazole application significantly affected the metabolic profile of rice seedlings, and the effect was proportionally leveraged with the increase of probenazole concentration. Probenazole resulted in a change of 54 metabolites. Salicylic acid, γ-aminobutyrate, shikimate and several other primary metabolites related to plant resistance were significantly up-regulated and some metabolites such as phenylalanine, valine and proline were down-regulated in probenazole-treated seedlings. These results revealed a metabolic pathway of rice seedlings induced by probenazole treatment regarding the resistance to M. grisea infection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 2055 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Targeted Metabolic Profiles of the Leaves and Xylem Sap of Two Sugarcane Genotypes Infected with the Vascular Bacterial Pathogen Leifsonia xyli subsp. xyli

by Fernanda R. Castro-Moretti, Jean-Christophe Cocuron, Mariana C. Cia, Thais R. Cataldi, Carlos A. Labate, Ana Paula Alonso and Luis E. A. Camargo

Metabolites 2021, 11(4), 234; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo11040234 - 12 Apr 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2433

Abstract

Ratoon stunt (RS) is a worldwide disease that reduces biomass up to 80% and is caused by the xylem-dwelling bacterium Leifsonia xyli subsp. xyli. This study identified discriminant metabolites between a resistant (R) and a susceptible (S) sugarcane variety at the early stages of pathogen colonization (30 and 120 days after inoculation—DAI) by untargeted and targeted metabolomics of leaves and xylem sap using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), respectively. Bacterial titers were quantified in sugarcane extracts at 180 DAI through real-time polymerase chain reaction. Bacterial titers were at least four times higher on the S variety than in the R one. Global profiling detected 514 features in the leaves and 68 in the sap, while 119 metabolites were quantified in the leaves and 28 in the sap by targeted metabolomics. Comparisons between mock-inoculated treatments indicated a greater abundance of amino acids in the leaves of the S variety and of phenolics, flavonoids, and salicylic acid in the R one. In the xylem sap, fewer differences were detected among phenolics and flavonoids, but also included higher abundances of the signaling molecule sorbitol and glycerol in R. Metabolic changes in the leaves following pathogen inoculation were detected earlier in R than in S and were mostly related to amino acids in R and to phosphorylated compounds in S. Differentially represented metabolites in the xylem sap included abscisic acid. The data represent a valuable resource of potential biomarkers for metabolite-assisted selection of resistant varieties to RS. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

20 pages, 1973 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Metabolic Profile Discriminates and Predicts Arabidopsis Susceptibility to Virus under Field Conditions

by Bernadette Rubio, Olivier Fernandez, Patrick Cosson, Thierry Berton, Mélodie Caballero, Roxane Lion, Fabrice Roux, Joy Bergelson, Yves Gibon and Valérie Schurdi-Levraud

Metabolites 2021, 11(4), 230; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo11040230 - 09 Apr 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2276

Abstract

As obligatory parasites, plant viruses alter host cellular metabolism. There is a lack of information on the variability of virus-induced metabolic responses among genetically diverse plants in a natural context with daily changing conditions. To decipher the metabolic landscape of plant-virus interactions in a natural setting, twenty-six and ten accessions of Arabidopsis thaliana were inoculated with Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV), in two field experiments over 2 years. The accessions were measured for viral accumulation, above-ground biomass, targeted and untargeted metabolic profiles. The phenotypes of the accessions ranged from susceptibility to resistance. Susceptible and resistant accessions were shown to have different metabolic routes after inoculation. Susceptible genotypes accumulate primary and secondary metabolites upon infection, at the cost of hindered growth. Twenty-one metabolic signatures significantly accumulated in resistant accessions whereas they maintained their growth as mock-inoculated plants without biomass penalty. Metabolic content was demonstrated to discriminate and be highly predictive of the susceptibility of inoculated Arabidopsis. This study is the first to describe the metabolic landscape of plant-virus interactions in a natural setting and its predictive link to susceptibility. It provides new insights on plant-virus interactions. In this undomesticated species and in ecologically realistic conditions, growth and resistance are in a permanent conversation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

19 pages, 839 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Pinus pinaster Early Hormonal Defence Responses to Pinewood Nematode (Bursaphelenchus xylophilus) Infection

by Ana M. Rodrigues, Swen Langer, Isabel Carrasquinho, Ed Bergström, Tony Larson, Jane Thomas-Oates and Carla António

Metabolites 2021, 11(4), 227; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo11040227 - 08 Apr 2021

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2907

Abstract

The pinewood nematode (PWN) is the causal agent of pine wilt disease, a pathology that affects conifer forests, mainly Pinus spp. PWN infection can induce the expression of phytohormone-related genes; however, changes at the early phytohormone level have not yet been explored. Phytohormones are low-abundance metabolites, and thus, difficult to quantify. Moreover, most methodologies focus mainly on Arabidopsis or crop species. This work aimed to validate a fast (run time 6.6 min) liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (LC-QqQ-MS/MS) analytical method to quantify 14 phytohormones in Pinus pinaster stem tissues. This method was further applied to evaluate, for the first time, early phytohormone changes in susceptible and resistant phenotypes of P. pinaster 24, 48 and 72 h after inoculation (HAI) with PWN. A significant increase in salicylic acid (SA, 48 and 72 HAI) and jasmonic acid methyl ester (JA-ME, 72 HAI) was observed in susceptible phenotypes. Results indicate that the higher susceptibility of P. pinaster to PWN infection might result from an inefficient trigger of hypersensitive responses, with the involvement of JA and SA pathways. This work provides an important update in forest research, and adds to the current knowledge of Pinus spp. defence responses to PWN infection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

20 pages, 2806 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Concurrent Metabolic Profiling and Quantification of Aromatic Amino Acids and Phytohormones in Solanum lycopersicum Plants Responding to Phytophthora capsici

by Msizi I. Mhlongo, Lizelle A. Piater, Paul A. Steenkamp, Nico Labuschagne and Ian A. Dubery

Metabolites 2020, 10(11), 466; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo10110466 - 16 Nov 2020

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2637

Abstract

Pathogenic microorganisms account for large production losses in the agricultural sector. Phytophthora capsici is an oomycete that causes blight and fruit rot in important crops, especially those in the Solanaceae family. P. capsici infection is difficult to control due to genetic diversity, arising from sexual reproduction, and resistant spores that remain dormant in soil. In this study, the metabolomics of tomato plants responding to infection by P. capsici were investigated. Non-targeted metabolomics, based on liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS), were used with multivariate data analyses to investigate time-dependent metabolic reprogramming in the roots, stems, and leaves of stem-infected plants, over an 8 day period. In addition, phytohormones and amino acids were determined using quantitative LC-MS. Methyl salicylate and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate were detected as major signalling molecules in the defensive response to P. capsici. As aromatic amino acid precursors of secondary metabolic pathways, both phenylalanine and tryptophan showed a continuous increase over time in all tissues, whereas tyrosine peaked at day 4. Non-targeted metabolomic analysis revealed phenylpropanoids, benzoic acids, glycoalkaloids, flavonoids, amino acids, organic acids, and fatty acids as the major classes of reprogrammed metabolites. Correlation analysis showed that metabolites derived from the same pathway, or synthesised by different pathways, could either have a positive or negative correlation. Furthermore, roots, stems, and leaves showed contrasting time-dependent metabolic reprogramming, possibly related to the biotrophic vs. necrotrophic life-stages of the pathogen, and overlapping biotic and abiotic stress signaling. As such, the targeted and untargeted approaches complemented each other, to provide a detailed view of key time-dependent metabolic changes, occurring in both the asymptomatic and symptomatic stages of infection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

Review

Jump to: Research

25 pages, 1546 KiB

Open AccessReview

Unravelling Plant Responses to Stress—The Importance of Targeted and Untargeted Metabolomics

by James William Allwood, Alex Williams, Henriette Uthe, Nicole M. van Dam, Luis A. J. Mur, Murray R. Grant and Pierre Pétriacq

Metabolites 2021, 11(8), 558; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo11080558 - 22 Aug 2021

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 5948

Abstract

Climate change and an increasing population, present a massive global challenge with respect to environmentally sustainable nutritious food production. Crop yield enhancements, through breeding, are decreasing, whilst agricultural intensification is constrained by emerging, re-emerging, and endemic pests and pathogens, accounting for ~30% of global crop losses, as well as mounting abiotic stress pressures, due to climate change. Metabolomics approaches have previously contributed to our knowledge within the fields of molecular plant pathology and plant–insect interactions. However, these remain incredibly challenging targets, due to the vast diversity in metabolite volatility and polarity, heterogeneous mixtures of pathogen and plant cells, as well as rapid rates of metabolite turn-over. Unravelling the systematic biochemical responses of plants to various individual and combined stresses, involves monitoring signaling compounds, secondary messengers, phytohormones, and defensive and protective chemicals. This demands both targeted and untargeted metabolomics approaches, as well as a range of enzymatic assays, protein assays, and proteomic and transcriptomic technologies. In this review, we focus upon the technical and biological challenges of measuring the metabolome associated with plant stress. We illustrate the challenges, with relevant examples from bacterial and fungal molecular pathologies, plant–insect interactions, and abiotic and combined stress in the environment. We also discuss future prospects from both the perspective of key innovative metabolomic technologies and their deployment in breeding for stress resistance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

26 pages, 5714 KiB

Open AccessReview

Deciphering Prunus Responses to PPV Infection: A Way toward the Use of Metabolomics Approach for the Diagnostic of Sharka Disease

by Christian Espinoza, Benoît Bascou, Christophe Calvayrac and Cédric Bertrand

Metabolites 2021, 11(7), 465; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo11070465 - 19 Jul 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2293

Abstract

Sharka disease, caused by Plum pox virus (PPV), induces several changes in Prunus. In leaf tissues, the infection may cause oxidative stress and disrupt the photosynthetic process. Moreover, several defense responses can be activated after PPV infection and have been detected at the phytohormonal, transcriptomic, proteomic, and even translatome levels. As proposed in this review, some responses may be systemic and earlier to the onset of symptoms. Nevertheless, these changes are highly dependent among species, variety, sensitivity, and tissue type. In the case of fruit tissues, PPV infection can modify the ripening process, induced by an alteration of the primary metabolism, including sugars and organic acids, and secondary metabolism, including phenolic compounds. Interestingly, metabolomics is an emerging tool to better understand Prunus–PPV interactions mainly in primary and secondary metabolisms. Moreover, through untargeted metabolomics analyses, specific and early candidate biomarkers of PPV infection can be detected. Nevertheless, these candidate biomarkers need to be validated before being selected for a diagnostic or prognosis by targeted analyses. The development of a new method for early detection of PPV-infected trees would be crucial for better management of the outbreak, especially since there is no curative treatment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

25 pages, 3364 KiB

Open AccessReview

Revisiting the Complex Pathosystem of Huanglongbing: Deciphering the Role of Citrus Metabolites in Symptom Development

by Yasser Nehela and Nabil Killiny

Metabolites 2020, 10(10), 409; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo10100409 - 13 Oct 2020

Cited by 22 | Viewed by 4191

Abstract

Huanglongbing (HLB), formerly known as citrus greening disease, is one of the most devastating bacterial diseases in citrus worldwide. HLB is caused by ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ bacterium and transmitted by Diaphorina citri. Both ‘Ca. L. asiaticus’ and its vector manipulate the host metabolism to fulfill their nutritional needs and/or to neutralize the host defense responses. Herein, we discuss the history of HLB and the complexity of its pathosystem as well as the geographical distribution of its pathogens and vectors. Recently, our recognition of physiological events associated with ‘Ca. L. asiaticus’ infection and/or D. citri-infestation has greatly improved. However, the roles of citrus metabolites in the development of HLB symptoms are still unclear. We believe that symptom development of HLB disease is a complicated process and relies on a multilayered metabolic network which is mainly regulated by phytohormones. Citrus metabolites play vital roles in the development of HLB symptoms through the modulation of carbohydrate metabolism, phytohormone homeostasis, antioxidant pathways, or via the interaction with other metabolic pathways, particularly involving amino acids, leaf pigments, and polyamines. Understanding how ‘Ca. L. asiaticus’ and its vector, D. citri, affect the metabolic pathways of their host is critical for developing novel, sustainable strategies for HLB management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Metabolomics in Plant Defence)

► Show Figures

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Metabolomics in Plant Defence

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Published Papers (9 papers)

Research

Review

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI