Highly efficacious antiviral protection of plants by small interfering RNAs identified in vitro.
Nucleic Acids Res, 2019/09/26;47(17):9343-9357.
Gago-Zachert S[1, 2], Schuck J[1], Weinholdt C[3], Knoblich M[1], Pantaleo V[4], Grosse I[3, 5], Gursinsky T[1], Behrens SE[1]
Affiliations
PMID: 31433052DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkz678
Impact factor: 19.16
Abstract
In response to a viral infection, the plant's RNA silencing machinery processes viral RNAs into a huge number of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs). However, a very few of these siRNAs actually interfere with viral replication. A reliable approach to identify these immunologically effective siRNAs (esiRNAs) and to define the characteristics underlying their activity has not been available so far. Here, we develop a novel screening approach that enables a rapid functional identification of antiviral esiRNAs. Tests on the efficacy of such identified esiRNAs of a model virus achieved a virtual full protection of plants against a massive subsequent infection in transient applications. We find that the functionality of esiRNAs depends crucially on two properties: the binding affinity to Argonaute proteins and the ability to access the target RNA. The ability to rapidly identify functional esiRNAs could be of great benefit for all RNA silencing-based plant protection measures against viruses and other pathogens.
MeSH terms
Antiviral Agents; Arabidopsis; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Plant Diseases; RNA Interference; RNA, Small Interfering; Virus Replication
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