Genomic Approaches for Understanding Virulence and Resistance in the Sunflower-Orobanche Host-Parasite Interaction
Authors: Joel Daniel M. , Knapp Steven J. , Tadmor Yaakov 
Published: December 2021

Oroginal Objectives: (i) identify DNA markers linked to the avirulence (Avr) locus and locate the Avr locus through genetic mapping with an inter-race Orobanche cumana population; (ii) develop high-throughput fingerprint DNA markers for genotypingO. cumana races; (iii) identify nucleotide binding domain leucine rich repeat (NB-LRR) genes encoding R proteins conferring resistance to O. cumana in sunflower; (iv) increase the resolution of the chromosomal segment harboring Or₅ and related R genes through genetic and physical mapping in previously and newly developed mapping populations of sunflower; and (v) develop high-throughput DNA markers for rapidly and efficiently identifying and transferring sunflower R genes through marker-assisted selection. Revisions made during the course of project: Following changes in O. cumana race distribution in Israel, the newly arrived virulent race H was chosen for further analysis. HA412-HO, which was primarily chosen as a susceptible sunflower cultivar, was more resistant to the new parasite populations than var. Shemesh, thus we shifted sunflower research into analyzing the resistance of HA412-HO. We exceeded the deliverables for Objectives #3-5 by securing funding for complete physical and high-density genetic mapping of the sunflower genome, in addition to producing a complete draft sequence of the sunflower genome. We discovered limited diversity between the parents of the O. cumana population developed for the mapping study. Hence, the developed DNA marker resources were insufficient to support genetic map construction. This objective was beyond the scale and scope of the funding. This objective is challenging enough to be the entire focus of follow up studies. Background to the topic: O. cumana, an obligate parasitic weed, is one of the most economically important and damaging diseases of sunflower, causes significant yield losses in susceptible genotypes, and threatens production in Israel and many other countries. Breeding for resistance has been crucial for protecting sunflower from O. cumana, and problematic because new races of the pathogen continually emerge, necessitating discovery and deployment of new R genes. The process is challenging because of the uncertainty in identifying races in a genetically diverse parasite. Major conclusions, solutions, achievements: We developed a small collection of SSR markers for genetic mapping in O. cumana and completed a diversity study to lay the ground for objective #1. Because DNA sequencing and SNPgenotyping technology dramatically advanced during the course of the study, we recommend shifting future work to SNP discovery and mapping using array-based approaches, instead of SSR markers. We completed a pilot study using a 96-SNP array, but it was not large enough to support genetic mapping in O.cumana. The development of further SNPs was beyond the scope of the grant. However, the collection of SSR markers was ideal for genetic diversity analysis, which indicated that O. cumanapopulations in Israel considerably differ frompopulations in other Mediterranean countries. We supplied physical and genetic mapping resources for identifying R-genes in sunflower responsible for resistance to O. cumana. Several thousand mapped SNP markers and a complete draft of the sunflower genome sequence are powerful tools for identifying additional candidate genes and understanding the genomic architecture of O. cumana-resistanceanddisease-resistance genes. Implications: The OrobancheSSR markers have utility in sunflower breeding and genetics programs, as well as a tool for understanding the heterogeneity of races in the field and for geographically mapping of pathotypes.The segregating populations of both Orobanche and sunflower hybrids are now available for QTL analyses.