Function Research Of Sclerotium Formation Related Genes In Botrytis Cinerea

Gray mold is an important disease in the production, storage and transportation of fruit and vegetable. Botrytis cinerea is the main pathogen of gray mold, and can infect more than 200 kinds of plants（such as grape, tomato, strawberry, cucumber, et al.）. The sclerotia of B. cinerea can survive for long period under various adverse environmental conditions. However, the molecular mechanism of sclerotial development is still unclear and remains to be clarified in B. cinerea. Exploring the function and mechanism of those genes which differently expressed during sclerotia formation will facilitate us to find new methods to control the Gray mold. The results in this study were summarized as followings: 1. According to the RNA-Seq results, three genes（BC1G₁0330, BC1G₀2018 and BC1G₀6890） had higher expression levels during sclerotial development of B. cinerea were selected for further study. The expression profiles of these genes were confirmed by using Real-time RT-PCR. 2. Three genes（BC1G₁0330, BC1G₀2018 and BC1G₀6890） were knocked out by PEG mediated protoplast transformation method according to the principle of segmentation label and homologous recombination. These gene knockout mutants are PCR verified after purified by single spore isolation. 3. In order to further research these genes’ function in B. cinerea, each gene knockout mutants’ sclerotia formation ability, growth rate, colony morphology, sporulation ability and pathogenicity are tested and compared with the wild type strain B05.10.