Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2016, 17(12), 2076; doi:10.3390/ijms17122076
Structural Characterization of Oligochitosan Elicitor from Fusarium sambucinum and Its Elicitation of Defensive Responses in Zanthoxylum bungeanum
1
Department of Forest Pathology, College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
2
Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180, USA
3
Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Chemical and Biological Engineering, and Biology and Biomedical Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editor: Marcello Iriti
Received: 17 October 2016 / Revised: 30 November 2016 / Accepted: 6 December 2016 / Published: 10 December 2016
(This article belongs to the Section Molecular Plant Sciences)
Abstract
Oligosaccharide elicitors from pathogens have been shown to play major roles in host plant defense responses involving plant–pathogen chemoperception and interaction. In the present study, chitosan and oligochitosan were prepared from pathogen Fusarium sambucinum, and their effects on infection of Zanthoxylum bungeanum stems were investigated. Results showed that oligochitosan inhibited the infection of the pathogen, and that the oligochitosan fraction with a degree of polymerization (DP) between 5 and 6 showed the optimal effect. Oligochitosan DP5 was purified from fraction DP5-6 and was structurally characterized using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Oligochitosan DP5 showed significant inhibition against the infection of the pathogenic fungi on host plant stems. An investigation of the mechanism underlying this effect showed that oligochitosan DP5 increased the activities of defensive enzymes and accumulation of phenolics in host Z. bungeanum. These results suggest that oligochitosan from pathogenic fungi can mediate the infection of host plants with a pathogen by acting as an elicitor that triggers the defense system of a plant. This information will be valuable for further exploration of the interactions between the pathogen F. sambucinum and host plant Z. bungeanum. View Full-TextKeywords:
structural characterization; fungal oligochitosan elicitor; Fusarium sambucinum; Zanthoxylum bungeanum; plant–pathogen interaction; defensive response
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Li, P.; Linhardt, R.J.; Cao, Z. Structural Characterization of Oligochitosan Elicitor from Fusarium sambucinum and Its Elicitation of Defensive Responses in Zanthoxylum bungeanum. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2016, 17, 2076.
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