Identification of Soybean Genes Whose Expression is Affected by the <i>Ensifer fredii</i> HH103 Effector Protein NopP

• Main Authors: Jinhui Wang, Jieqi Wang, Chunyan Liu, Chao Ma, Changyu Li, Yongqian Zhang, Zhaoming Qi, Rongsheng Zhu, Yan Shi, Jianan Zou, Qingying Li, Jingyi Zhu, Yingnan Wen, Zhijun Sun, Hanxi Liu, Hongwei Jiang, Zhengong Yin, Zhenbang Hu, Qingshan Chen, Xiaoxia Wu, Dawei Xin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2018-11-01
• Series: International Journal of Molecular Sciences
• Subjects: soybean; NopP; symbiosis; QTL
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/19/11/3438
• ISSN: 1422-0067

In some legume&#8315;rhizobium symbioses, host specificity is influenced by rhizobial nodulation outer proteins (Nops). However, the genes encoding host proteins that interact with Nops remain unknown. We generated an <i>Ensifer fredii</i> HH103 NopP mutant (HH103&#937;NopP), and analyzed the nodule number (NN) and nodule dry weight (NDW) of 10 soybean germplasms inoculated with the wild-type <i>E. fredii</i> HH103 or the mutant strain. An analysis of recombinant inbred lines (RILs) revealed the quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with NopP interactions. A soybean genomic region containing two overlapping QTLs was analyzed in greater detail. A transcriptome analysis and qRT-PCR assay were used to identify candidate genes encoding proteins that interact with NopP. In some germplasms, NopP positively and negatively affected the NN and NDW, while NopP had different effects on NN and NDW in other germplasms. The QTL region in chromosome 12 was further analyzed. The expression patterns of candidate genes <i>Glyma.12g031200</i> and <i>Glyma.12g073000</i> were determined by qRT-PCR, and were confirmed to be influenced by NopP.