Why is this genetic research institute named after the famous general of the Western Han Dynasty, Wei Qing
Chen Yuhang and Zhou Jianmin, a cooperative team of the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, recently cloned a broad-spectrum anti clubroot gene and named it after Wei Qing, a famous general in the Western Han Dynasty. Relevant research results were published in the international academic journal Cell on June 8, Beijing time.
Root swelling disease is the largest disease in the agricultural production of cruciferous crops such as rapeseed. Root swelling bacteria can survive in soil for 20 years, and once farmland is contaminated, it will no longer be suitable for planting cruciferous crops. In recent years, root rot disease has been rapidly spreading in China, accounting for approximately 30% of the planting area of cruciferous crops in the country.
Symptoms of swollen roots in rapeseed affected by root swelling disease. Provided by Yang Hui from Sichuan Agricultural University
The research team isolated and identified the highly resistant root nodule disease gene WTS and elucidated its mechanism of action. WTS encodes a protein that has never been reported before, and after being introduced into rapeseed, it not only exhibits good resistance but also completely normal growth and development; Rapeseed carrying WTS exhibits high resistance to multiple root nodules, indicating that WTS is a broad-spectrum resistance gene. Further research has found that when root swelling bacteria invade, WTS forms a protective barrier around the cell periphery, thereby protecting the roots from bacterial invasion. This is similar to the establishment of defense lines and resistance against the Xiongnu in the northern mountainous areas during the Qin and Han dynasties, so the gene was named after the Western Han general Wei Qing.
The team from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has been studying plant immune mechanisms for a long time. In the early stage, they collaborated with teams such as Chai Jijie from Tsinghua University to discover plant disease resistant bodies for the first time internationally in 2019. In 2021, they discovered the calcium ion channel function of disease resistant bodies, solving the problem that has plagued the field of plant immunity for more than 20 years. Some of their achievements have been selected as one of the top ten advances in Chinese life science in 2019 and the top ten advances in Chinese agricultural science in 2021.
This study not only has good application prospects in the breeding of cruciferous crops for resistance to root knot disease, but more importantly, it is the first discovery of calcium ion release channels and their mediated immune mechanisms in plants, which is another innovative achievement.