A femtomolar-range suicide germination stimulant for the parasitic plant Striga hermonthica

The parasitic plant has been causing devastating damage to the crop production in Africa. Because requires host-generated strigolactones to germinate, the identification of selective and potent strigolactone agonists could help control these noxious weeds. We developed a selective agonist, sphynolac...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2018-12, Vol.362 (6420), p.1301-1305
Main Authors:	Uraguchi, Daisuke, Kuwata, Keiko, Hijikata, Yuh, Yamaguchi, Rie, Imaizumi, Hanae, Am, Sathiyanarayanan, Rakers, Christin, Mori, Narumi, Akiyama, Kohki, Irle, Stephan, McCourt, Peter, Kinoshita, Toshinori, Ooi, Takashi, Tsuchiya, Yuichiro
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Agricultural production BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES Crop damage Crop production Crops Germination Hormones Infestation Modules Organic chemistry Parasitic plants Parasitism Phytohormones Seeds Striga Striga hermonthica Suicide Weeds
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Summary:	The parasitic plant has been causing devastating damage to the crop production in Africa. Because requires host-generated strigolactones to germinate, the identification of selective and potent strigolactone agonists could help control these noxious weeds. We developed a selective agonist, sphynolactone-7, a hybrid molecule originated from chemical screening, that contains two functional modules derived from a synthetic scaffold and a core component of strigolactones. Cooperative action of these modules in the activation of a high-affinity strigolactone receptor ShHTL7 allows sphynolactone-7 to provoke germination with potency in the femtomolar range. We demonstrate that sphynolactone-7 is effective for reducing parasitism without impinging on host strigolactone-related processes.
ISSN:	0036-8075 1095-9203