Salicylic acid mediated immune response of Citrus Sinensis to varying frequencies of herbivory and pathogen inoculation

Plant immunity against pathogens and pests is comprised of complex mechanisms orchestrated by signaling pathways regulated by plant hormones [Salicylic acid (SA) and Jasmonic acid (JA)]. Investigations of plant immune response to phytopathogens and phloem-feeders have revealed that SA plays a critical role in reprogramming of the activity and/or localization of transcriptional regulators via post-translational modifications. We explored the contributing effects of herbivory by a phytopathogen vector [Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri] and pathogen [Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas)] infection on response of sweet orange [Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck] using manipulative treatments designed to mimic the types of infestations/infections that citrus growers experience when cultivating citrus in the face of Huanglongbing (HLB) disease. A one-time (7 d) inoculation access period with CLas-infected vectors caused SA-associated upregulation of PR-1, stimulating defense response after a long period of infection without herbivory (270 and 330 days). In contrast, while repeated (monthly) pulses of 7 d psyllid feeding injury stimulated immunity in CLas-infected citrus by increasing [SA] in leaves initially (up to 120 d), long-term (270 and 330 days) repeated herbivory caused [SA] to decrease coincident with upregulation of genes associated with SA metabolism (BMST and DMR6). Similarly, transcriptional responses and metabolite (SA and its analytes) accumulation in citrus exposed to a continuously reproducing population of D. citri exhibited a transitory upregulation of genes associated with SA signaling at 120 days and a posterior downregulation after long-term psyllid (adults and nymphs) feeding (270 and 330 days). Herbivory played an important role in regulation of SA accumulation in mature leaves of C. sinensis, whether or not those trees were coincidentally infected with CLas. Our results indicate that prevention of feeding injury inflicted by D. citri from the tritrophic interaction may allow citrus plants to better cope with the consequences of CLas infection, highlighting the importance of vector suppression as a component of managing this cosmopolitan disease. Author SummaryWe explored tritrophic interactions among an insect vector (Diaphorina citri) - phytopathogen (Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus) - and cultivated fruit crop [sweet orange, Citrus sinensis (L) Osbeck]. Transcriptional and metabolic responses of plants were analyzed over an extended time-course of disease progression after various frequencies of herbivore feeding and durations of pathogen infection using manipulative treatments designed to mimic the types of infestations/infections that citrus growers experience when cultivating citrus in the presence of the devastating citrus disease, huanglongbing. We found that in the absence of coincident psyllid feeding damage, citrus trees could mount a defense response against the pathogen by activating the salicylic acid (SA) pathway. Repeated, monthly pulses of herbivory led to pronounced stimulation of SA transcription that was coincident with diminished pathogen titers in plants. Although insect injury initially activated SA-dependent defense responses, continuous and/or long-term ([≥] 270 d) herbivory shut down PR-1-dependent defense responses against the pathogen. Our results provide a mechanism explaining how vector suppression contributes to maintaining health of cultivated citrus in areas where huanglongbing is endemic. Our results also point to specific gene targets that may yield novel genotypes expressing tolerance against CLas after appropriate manipulations.