N6-methyladenosine RNA modification promotes viral genomic RNA stability and infection

Abstract

Abstract Molecular manipulation of susceptibility ( S ) genes that are antipodes to resistance ( R ) genes has been adopted as an alternative strategy for controlling crop diseases. Here, we show the S gene encoding Triticum aestivum m 6 A methyltransferase B (TaMTB) is identified by a genome-wide association study and subsequently shown to be a positive regulator for wheat yellow mosaic virus (WYMV) infection. TaMTB is localized in the nucleus, is translocated into the cytoplasmic aggregates by binding to WYMV NIb to upregulate the m 6 A level of WYMV RNA1 and stabilize the viral RNA, thus promoting viral infection. A natural mutant allele TaMTB-SNP176C is found to confer an enhanced susceptibility to WYMV infection through genetic variation analysis on 243 wheat varieties. Our discovery highlights this allele can be a useful target for the molecular wheat breeding in the future.