Researcher Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Malmo, Skane Lan, Sweden
Body of Abstract: Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the world's third most commonly grown food crop with an exceptionally high yield potential. However, its production is hampered by various pathogens, leading to significant yield losses. Current control methods include frequent and costly fungicide applications and classical breeding is complicated in potatoes. A promising approach to developing long-term solutions involves improving our understanding of potato plant immunity and identifying factors that can provide broad-spectrum resistance. To facilitate such efforts, we applied comparative proteomic techniques to enhance our understanding of changes in protein abundance during immune responses in potato leaves. In the course of our study, we identified Parakletos, a potato protein that contributes to plant stress susceptibility. Knockout or silencing of Parakletos resulted in enhanced resistance to oomycetes, fungi, bacteria, salt, and drought, whereas overexpression of Parakletos decreased resistance. In response to biotic stimuli, plants overexpressing Parakletos exhibited a reduced amplitude of reactive oxygen species and Ca2+ signaling, while the silencing of Parakletos had the opposite effect. The function of Parakletos requires the calcium-sensing receptor, and Parakletos homologues have been identified in all major crops. After conducting two years of field trials, we found that the deletion of Parakletos improved resistance to Phytophthora infestans and increased yield. These findings could be exploited to enhance crop resilience towards both abiotic and biotic stress, potentially propelling progress towards low-input agriculture in a changing climate.