Transcriptome profiling of petiole, stem and root tissues of Nicotiana benthamiana in response to Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) infection

Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) is a model positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus that causes severe damage to solanaceous crops worldwide. Most previous studies on TMV-Nicotiana benthamiana interactions have focused on leaf tissues, while the molecular mechanisms underlying TMV infection and systemic spread in non-leaf tissues (petiole, stem, root) remain largely unknown. Here, we performed high-throughput RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) on petiole, stem and root tissues of Nicotiana benthamiana at 4 days to 7 days post-inoculation, dpiwith TMV and mock-inoculated controls. Three biological replicates were included for each treatment and tissue type. The primary objectives of this study are to: (1) identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in response to TMV infection in each non-leaf tissue; (2) reveal tissue-specific transcriptional regulatory networks associated with TMV systemic movement; (3) provide a comprehensive transcriptomic resource for understanding TMV-host interactions in non-photosynthetic tissues. This dataset will facilitate further functional characterization of key genes involved in TMV infection and lay a foundation for developing novel virus resistance strategies.