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Poster

Session: Session 2 Presenting Authors at Posters (Evens)

P-010 - Analysis of the roles of MYB4 and ERF3 transcription factors in the growth-defence trade-off in wheat

Thursday, July 17, 2025
13:30 - 15:15  
Location: Confex Hall 3
Crop resistance genetics and genomics

    Presenting Author(s)

  • KP

    Kathrin Elisabeth Paulus-Tremel

    University of Bayreuth
    Kulmbach, Bayern, Germany

    • Author(s)

  • LE

    Laura Eccleston

    Helmholtz Munich, Institute of Biochemical Plant Pathology
    Munich, Bayern, Germany

  • DL

    Daniel Lang

    Helmholtz Munich, Research Unit Plant Genomes and Systems Biology
    Munich, Bayern, Germany

  • SD

    Sanjukta Dey

    Helmholtz Munich, Institute of Biochemical Plant Pathology
    Munich, Bayern, Germany

  • KM

    Klaus Mayer

    Helmholtz Munich, Research Unit Plant Genomes and Systems Biology
    Munich, Bayern, Germany

  • CV

    Corina Vlot-Schuster

    University of Bayreuth/Chair of Crop Plant Genetics
    Kulmbach, Bayern, Germany

Innate immune memory offers broad-spectrum disease resistance across animals and plants. This resistance is achieved with minimal fitness costs, thanks to priming mechanisms that are not yet fully understood. In this study, we explore how wheat (Triticum aestivum) manages the trade-off between growth and defence. Using a multi-scale modelling approach we could identify five stimulus-specific response meta-modules that manage the growth-defence trade-off in wheat. These modules balance primary metabolism and defence processed through transitions between two regulatory patterns. Initial infection with Pseudomonas syringae induced broad-scale on/off switches in meta-module responses. Subsequent infection with Xanthomonas translucens reduced susceptibility of wheat plants toward X. translucens. Inter-modular interactions influenced primary metabolism and growth, with negative regulatory interactions creating distinct metabolic states. These findings suggest that specific transcription factors within the defence meta-module act as central switches, enabling wheat to optimize both growth and defence. Within this study, we discovered a reciprocal regulation of ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR 3 (ERF3) and MYB4 transcription factors. The proposed defence-growth switch was investigated by employing CRISPR-Cas9 technology to generate respective ERF3 and MYB4 mutants in wheat and barley. Progress, including a description of our CRISPR-Cas pipeline for barley and wheat, will be discussed.