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Expression of a Peppermint (E)-β-Farnesene Synthase Gene in Rice Has Significant Repelling Effect on Bird Cherry-Oat Aphid (Rhopalosiphum padi)

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Abstract

Aphids (Aphididae) cause great damage to economically important cereal crops due to their unparalleled reproductive capacity. The sesquiterpene (E)-β-farnesene (EβF) is the alarm pheromone for many aphids, which can be applied to disperse aphids in crops. The peppermint EβF synthase gene (EβFS), which enables the production of EβF in plants to control aphids, has been used in Arabidopsis and tobacco, but has not been studied in rice or other crops yet. Here, we transformed the peppermint EβFS gene into the rice variety Zhonghua 11 and obtained two homozygous transgenic lines with single-copy insertion. EβFS expression and EβF production were then verified by reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR)/quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Although only a limited amount of EβF was detected, the transgenic lines showed a significant repelling effect on bird cherry-oat aphid (Rhopalosiphum padi) compared with the control. Thus, this study provides a valuable reference for improving the resistance against aphids in rice or other important crops.

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Abbreviations

EβF:

(E)-β-farnesene

EβFS :

EβF synthase gene

PCR:

Polymerase chain reaction

RT-PCR:

Reverse transcription-PCR

qPCR:

Quantitative real-time PCR

GC-MS:

Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

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Acknowledgments

We thank Prof. John A. Pickett and Dr. Jing-jiang Zhou at Rothamsted Research for the donation of EβFS gene. We also are grateful to Prof. Yong-jun Zhang at CAAS for the technical assistance of volatiles collection and analysis; Prof. Hong-xia Hua at HZAU for providing bird cherry-oat aphids; and Dan-lu Liu for improving the English writing. We acknowledge the financial support from the China-UK Programme in Global Priorities (2013DFG32230 and BB/L001683/1), the Special Fund for Agro-scientific Research in the Public Interest of China (201403030), and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) International Partnering Award (BB/J02028/1).

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement and National Centre of Plant Gene Research, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China

    Liang Gao, Xiting Zhang, Fei Zhou, Hao Chen & Yongjun Lin

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  1. Liang Gao
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  2. Xiting Zhang
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  3. Fei Zhou
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  4. Hao Chen
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  5. Yongjun Lin
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Correspondence to Yongjun Lin.

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Gao, L., Zhang, X., Zhou, F. et al. Expression of a Peppermint (E)-β-Farnesene Synthase Gene in Rice Has Significant Repelling Effect on Bird Cherry-Oat Aphid (Rhopalosiphum padi). Plant Mol Biol Rep 33, 1967–1974 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11105-015-0888-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11105-015-0888-4

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