Potential using of transgenerational resistance against common bacterial blight in Phaseolus vulgaris

Direct activation of induced resistance is recommended for the prolonged and effective control of plant diseases. However, there are some potential risks to this method in field application. The priming form of resistance has less risk; nevertheless, it is necessary to increase adaptation and efficacy. Recently, it was shown that the priming as a form of resistance mechanism in plants was transferred epigenetically. In our study, the use of this parentally-inherited resistance for disease control and the possibility of increasing resistance capacity were investigated. For this aim, plant growth parameters, population dynamics of Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli (Xap), and severity and development of the common bean bacterial blight disease were investigated in the primed generation obtained from acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) treated parent bean. It was revealed that the primed progeny suppressed the disease by 11%, according to the area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC). Moreover, when the primed progeny were treated with a low dose of ASM (20 mu M), they showed nearly twice the resistance capacity and suppressed the disease by 60%. In primed progeny, ASM treatment significantly slowed the development of Xap populations until the 14th day, also did not adverse effects on plant development. All these results indicated that seed production with this method offers the possibility of increasing the resistance capacity of later generations, just as it ensured the protection of parents. Thus, using the appropriate dose of activator at primed progeny will ensure that the efficacy of control methods is increased, while pesticide inputs can be reduced.