Comparative expression analysis in susceptible and resistant Gossypium hirsutum responding to Verticillium dahliae infection by cDNA-AFLP

Verticillium wilt caused by the soil-borne fungus Verticillium dahliae (V. dahliae), is a devastating disease of cotton, leading to serious loss of lint yield worldwide. To study its resistance responses in both susceptible (Ejing No. 1) and resistant (NJ0703 and NJ0705) upland cotton cultivars (Gossypium hirsutum), cDNA-AFLP analysis was used to identify differentially expressed transcripts from resistant and susceptible cultivars that were infected with V. dahliae strain V991. A total of 83 transcript-derived fragments (TDFs) were obtained using 64 pairs of primer combinations. Interestingly, none of the differentially expressed fragments identified from susceptible cultivar Ejing No. 1 was found from resistant cultivars (NJ0703 and NJ0705). However, there were some similarities between NJ0703 (R) and NJ0705 (R), and 10 differentially expressed fragments were identified from both two resistant cultivars. The results indicated that the susceptible and resistant upland cottons responded differently to Verticillium infection. Moreover, the expression of transcripts was further validated through quantitative real-time PCR. Data showed that the activation of the transcripts was rapid and transient upon V. dahliae infection.

► Susceptible and resistant Gossypium hirsutum responded differently to Verticillium dahliae infection. ► Ten differentially expressed fragments were identified from both two resistant cultivars. ► The transcripts was quickly and transiently induced in resistant cultivars after the V. dahliae infection.