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Suppression of rice miR168 improves yield, flowering time and immunity

Nature Plants volume 7, pages 129–136 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

MicroRNA168 (miR168) is a key miRNA that targets Argonaute1 (AGO1), a major component of the RNA-induced silencing complex1,2. Previously, we reported that miR168 expression was responsive to infection by Magnaporthe oryzae, the causal agent of rice blast disease3. However, how miR168 regulates immunity to rice blast and whether it affects rice development remains unclear. Here, we report our discovery that the suppression of miR168 by a target mimic (MIM168) not only improves grain yield and shortens flowering time in rice but also enhances immunity to M. oryzae. These results were validated through repeated tests in rice fields in the absence and presence of rice blast pressure. We found that the miR168–AGO1 module regulates miR535 to improve yield by increasing panicle number, miR164 to reduce flowering time, and miR1320 and miR164 to enhance immunity. Our discovery demonstrates that changes in a single miRNA enhance the expression of multiple agronomically important traits.

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Fig. 1: miR168 regulates rice yield and flowering time.
Fig. 2: miR168 regulates rice immunity against M. oryzae.
Fig. 3: miR1320 contributes to miR168-regulated immunity.
Fig. 4: miR535 and miR164 contribute to miR168-regulated development.

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Data availability

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this Article and in its Supplementary Information files. The data are available upon request. Source data are provided with this paper.

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Acknowledgements

We thank C.-L. Lei (Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences) for providing IRBLkm-Ts and J.-M. Zhou (Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences) for suggestions on writing the manuscript. This work was supported by grants from the Sichuan Applied Fundamental Research Foundation (no. 2020YJ0332) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (nos. U19A2033, 31672090 and 31430072) to W.-M.W. and by grants from the National Institutes of Health (no. GM59962), USDA NIFA (no. 2017-67013-26590) and the Joint BioEnergy Institute funded by the US DOE (no. DE-AC02-05CH11231) to P.C.R. and M.C.

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  1. These authors contributed equally: He Wang, Yan Li, Mawsheng Chern, Yong Zhu.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Exploration and Utilization in Southwest China, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, China

    He Wang, Yan Li, Yong Zhu, Zhi-Xue Zhao, Jing Fan, Yan-Yan Huang, Ji-Wei Zhang, Mei Pu, Jing Wang, Min He, Wei-Tao Li, Xue-Wei Chen, Xian-Jun Wu, Shi-Gui Li, Ping Li & Wen-Ming Wang

  2. Rice Research Institute and Key Lab for Major Crop Diseases, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, China

    He Wang, Yan Li, Yong Zhu, Ling-Li Zhang, Jun-Hua Lu, Xu-Pu Li, Wen-Qiang Dang, Xiao-Chun Ma, Zhi-Xue Zhao, Jing Fan, Yan-Yan Huang, Ji-Wei Zhang, Mei Pu, Jing Wang, Min He, Wei-Tao Li, Xue-Wei Chen, Xian-Jun Wu, Shi-Gui Li, Ping Li & Wen-Ming Wang

  3. Department of Plant Pathology, University of California Davis, and the Joint BioEnergy Institute, Davis, CA, USA

    Mawsheng Chern & Pamela C. Ronald

  4. The State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China

    Zhi-Rui Yang, Sheng-Ze Yao & Yi Li

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  1. He Wang
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Contributions

Yan Li and W.-M.W. conceived the project. H.W., Y.Z., L.-L.Z., J.-H.L., W.-Q.D., Z.-R.Y., S.-Z.Y. and Z.-X.Z. carried out the experiments. X.-P.L. and X.-C.M. performed the transgenic plant generation and analysis. J.-W.Z. and M.P. conducted the field trials. M.C., J.F. and X.-J.W. analysed the data. Yan Li, M.C., P.C.R. and W.-M.W. wrote the paper. X.-W.C., W.-T.L., J.W., M.H., Y.-Y.H., S.-G.L., P.L. and Yi Li discussed the results and commented on the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Wen-Ming Wang.

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Peer review information Nature Plants thanks Yong-Hwan Lee, Shaoqing Li and Guo-Liang Wang for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Wang, H., Li, Y., Chern, M. et al. Suppression of rice miR168 improves yield, flowering time and immunity. Nat. Plants 7, 129–136 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41477-021-00852-x

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