2026-10-06T16:29:26Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/32972570 2026-10-01T12:36:59Z category_24388 portal_753 item_type_3 month_year_10_2026

Cell death-inducing effectors in the latent necrotrophic pathogen Cercospora zeina of maize Trystan Nadasen (24383534) Plant pathology Nicotiana benthaminana Agrobacterium mediated transient transformation Dothideomycetes Gray leaf spot (GLS) Maize (Zea Mays L.) RNA sequencing Cercospora zeina Latent necrotrophic pathogen Cell death-inducing activity SDG 1 No poverty SDG 2 Zero hunger SDG 12 Responsible consumption and production SDG 13 Climate action <p dir="ltr">The datasets underpin a PhD study titled "Transcriptomics and structural phylogenetics reveals cell death-inducing effectors in the latent necrotrophic pathogen Cercospora zeina of maize." This fungal pathogen enters the stomata, developing asymptomatically, without producing haustoria-like structures for up to 28 days before symptoms develop. RNA sequencing was used to characterise the transcriptomic dynamics during infection, providing insights into the molecular mechanisms supporting in-planta pathogen development and enabling investigation of effector expression during this time. Two distinct transcriptional waves were identified during the infective period. The first wave was characterized by limited growth despite the expression of genes involved in basic cellular processes and immune evasion. In contrast, the second wave was characterised by exponential growth and enrichment of genes associated with detoxification and carbohydrate catabolism, collectively supporting C. zeina as a latent necrotroph. A total of 140 differentially expressed effector genes were identified, with most being upregulated in the mid-stage during the transition to necrotrophy. During this stage, structurally related members of the NIS1 effector family were expressed, including a previously undescribed NIS1 variant, CzNIS1b. Transient expression of CzNIS1b in Nicotiana benthamiana induced a cell death response similar to that of canonical NIS1 orthologs, despite structural models revealing an atypical α-helix at the C-terminus.</p><p><br></p><p dir="ltr">To identify additional cell death-inducing effectors, structural phylogenetics was used to define effector structural families (ESFs) and identify candidate secreted effector proteins (CSEPs) from C. zeina with potential cell death-inducing activity. C. zeina CSEPs clustering with functionally characterized cell death-inducing effector orthologs within ESFs were hypothesized to induce cell death when transiently expressed in Nicotiana benthamiana. Indeed, C. zeina CSEPs from three distinct cell death-inducing families were chosen for biological validation and shown to induce cell death in N. benthamiana. Expression analysis showed that C. zeina ESFs generally contained no more than two highly expressed genes, suggesting limited structural redundancy and the possibility for effector gene silencing during infection. </p> 2026-10-01T12:36:59Z Dataset Dataset 10.25403/UPresearchdata.32972570.v1 https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Cell_death-inducing_effectors_in_the_latent_necrotrophic_pathogen_Cercospora_zeina_of_maize/32972570 CC BY 4.0 Open Access after 2028-07-13