Insights into the resistance of a synthetically-derived wheat to Septoria tritici blotch disease: less is more.

Little is known about the initial, symptomless (latent) phase of the devastating wheat disease Septoria tritici blotch. However, speculations as to its impact on fungal success and disease severity in the field have suggested that a long latent phase is beneficial to the host and can reduce inoculum build up in the field over a growing season. The winter wheat cultivar Stigg is derived from a synthetic hexaploid wheat and contains introgressions from wild tetraploid wheat Triticum turgidum subsp. dicoccoides, which contribute to cv. Stigg’s exceptional STB resistance, hallmarked by a long latent phase. We compared the early transcriptomic response to Zymoseptoria tritici of cv. Stigg to a susceptible wheat cultivar, to elucidate the mechanisms of and differences in pathogen recognition and disease response in these two hosts.