Novel apple miRNAs and their possible involvement in Fire Blight defense. Malus domestica

Fire blight (FB) is a bacterial disease affecting plants from Rosaceae family, including apple and pear. FB develops after the infection of Erwinia amylovora, gram-negative enterobacterium, and results in burnt-like damages and wilting, which can affect all organs of the plant. Although the mechanisms underlying disease response in apples are not elucidated yet, it has been well described that FB resistance depends on the rootstock type. The main objective of this work was to identify miRNAs involved in response to bacterial infection in order to better explain apple defense mechanisms against fire blight disease. We performed deep sequencing of eighteen small RNA libraries obtained from inoculated and non-inoculated Gala apple leaves. 233 novel plant mature miRNAs were identified together with their targets and potential role in response to bacterial infection. We identify three apple miRNAs responding to inoculation (mdm-miR168a,b, mdm-miR194C and mdm-miR1392C) as well as miRNAs reacting to bacterial infection in a rootstock-specific manner (miR395 family). Our results provide insights into the mechanisms of fire blight resistance in apple. Overall design: Actively-growing leaf tissue samples were collected from eighteen apple trees, which includes three biological replicates of inoculated and non-inoculated Gala scions grown on G.30 or M.27 rootstock.