Multidrug resistance of Rhizoctonia solani determined by enhanced efflux for fungicides

Plant pathogens can develop multidrug resistance (MDR) through metabolomic and efflux activities. Although MDR has been observed in the field, its mechanisms are yet to be further studied. MDR in Rhizoctonia solani induced by the uncoupler SYP-14288, which involved efflux transporters including ATP binding cassette (ABC) and major facilitator superfamily (MFS) have been reported in our previous study. To confirm this, corresponding genes of the wild-type R. solani X19 and its derived MDR mutant X19-7 were compared through transcriptomics, RNA-Seq data validation, and heterologous expression. Genes encoding six ABC transporters and seven MFS transporters were identified to be associated with MDR and mostly showed a constitutively higher expression in X19-7 than in X19 regardless of SYP-14288 treatment. Eight ABC transporter-encoding genes and eight MFS transporter-encoding genes were further characterized by transferring into Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The sensitivity of transformants containing either ABC transporter-encoding gene AG1IA_06082 and MFS transporterencoding gene AG1IA_08645 was significantly decreased in responses to fungicides having various modes of action including SYP-14288, fluazinam, chlorothalonil, and difenoconazole, indicating that these two genes were related to MDR. The roles of two genes were further confirmed by successfully detecting their protein products and high accumulation of SYP-14288 in yeast transformants. Thus, ABC and MFS transporters contributed to the development of MDR in R. solani. The result helps to understand the cause and mechanisms that influence the efficient use of fungicide.

Automated summary

This study found that plant pathogens can develop multidrug resistance (MDR) through metabolomic and efflux activities. The genes encoding ABC and MFS transporters were identified to be associated with MDR in Rhizoctonia solani, and their expression levels were higher in MDR mutant compared to the wild-type strain. Two of these transporters were found to be related to MDR and their roles were confirmed by detecting their protein products and high accumulation of an antifungal compound. These findings contribute to our understanding of fungicide resistance and the development of MDR.