TABLE 3.
Summary of HIGS and SIGS applications for control of fungal and oomycete pathogens.
| Type of gene silencing | Pathogen | Host | RNA type | Target gene(s) | Main effect(s) | References |
| HIGS | Puccinia triticina/Wheat Leaf Rust | Wheat | siRNA | PtMAPK1 PtCYC1 PtCNB | Reduction in endogenous transcript levels | Panwar et al., 2013 |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium head blight and Fusarium seedling blight | Wheat | hpRNA | Chs3b | Durable resistance to Fusarium head blight and seedling blight in wheat | Cheng et al., 2015 | |
| Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici/Wheat Stripe Rust | Wheat | hpRNA | PsCPK1 | Decreased virulence of Pst | Qi et al., 2017 | |
| Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici/Wheat Stripe Rust | Wheat | dsRNA | PsFUZ7 | Strong restriction of hyphal development | Zhu X. et al., 2017 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Wheat | miRNA | FGSG_03101 | Suppressed invasion of F. graminearum | Jiao and Peng, 2018 | |
| Puccinia triticina/Wheat Leaf Rust | Wheat | hpRNA |
PtMAPK1 PtCYC1 |
Impaired fungal development and a reduction in disease severity and progression in wheat plants | Panwar et al., 2018 | |
| Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici/Wheat Powdery Mildew | Wheat | dsRNA | β2-tubulin, SvrPm3a1/f1 Bgt_Bcg-6 Bgt_Bcg-7 |
Impaired virulence of B. g. tritici at the haustorial stage | Schaefer et al., 2020 | |
| Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici/Wheat Stripe Rust | Wheat | TaCSN5 | Broad−spectrum resistance to wheat stripe rust | Bai et al., 2021 | ||
| Blumeria graminis/Powdery Mildew | Wheat Barley |
mRNA | Avra10 | Reduction in haustorium formation | Nowara et al., 2010 | |
| Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordei/Barley Powdery Mildew | Barley | siRNA |
CSEP0062 CSEP0081 CSEP0145 CSEP0216 CSEP0222 CSEP0254 CSEP0398 |
Reduced rate of fungal penetration and haustoria formation | Ahmed et al., 2016 | |
| Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordei/Barley Powdery Mildew | Barley | hpRNA | CSEP0139 CSEP0182 | Reduced haustorial formation and size of the lesions | Li et al., 2021 | |
| Rhizoctonia solani/Sheath Blight | Rice | hpRNA |
RPMK1-1 RPMK1-2 |
Reduced R. solani infection | Tiwari et al., 2017 | |
| Magnaporthe oryzae/Rice Blast Fungus | Rice | siRNA |
MoABC1 MoMAC1 MoPMK1 |
Inhibited disease development and reduced the transcription of the genes | Zhu L. et al., 2017 | |
| Magnaporthe oryzae/Rice Blast Fungus | Rice | asiR1245 asiR1362 asiR1115 |
MoAP1 | Inhibited disease development and reduced the transcription of targeted fungal genes | Guo et al., 2019 | |
| Aspergillus flavus/Aspergillus Ear Rot | Maize | siRNAs | aflR | Reduction to aflatoxin accumulation in transgenic maize | Masanga et al., 2015 | |
| Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus parasiticus | Maize | siRNAs | aflC | Reduced aflatoxin below the regulatory threshold | Thakare et al., 2017 | |
| Aspergillus flavus/Aspergillus Ear Rot | Maize | siRNA | aflM | Reduced aflatoxin contamination | Raruang et al., 2020 | |
| Phytophthora infestans/Potato Late Blight | Potato | hpRNA |
PiGPB1 PiCESA2 PiPEC PiGAPDH |
Enhanced resistance to the late blight disease | Jahan et al., 2015 | |
| Phytophthora infestans/Potato Late Blight | Potato | siRNA | Avr3a | Inhibition of target gene expression in P. infestans | Sanju et al., 2015 | |
| Sclerotinia sclerotiorum/White Mold | Tobacco | hpRNA | Chs | Reduction in the level of CHS endogenous transcripts | Andrade et al., 2016 | |
| F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense/Fusarium Wilt | Banana | ihpRNA |
VEL FTF1 |
Reduced growth and decreased pathogenesis | Ghag et al., 2014 | |
| Fusarium oxysporum/Fusarium Wilt | Banana | ihpRNA | Foc TR4 ERG6/11 | Inhibition of growth and development of Foc TR4 | Dou et al., 2020 | |
| Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici/Tomato Fusarium Wilt | Tomato | hpRNA |
FOW2 chsV |
Inhibited fungal growth and increased resistance to the pathogen | Bharti et al., 2017 | |
| Colletotrichum gloeosporioides/Anthracnose | Chilly Tomato | siRNA | CgCOM1 | Confers resistance against anthracnose disease in chilly and tomato | Mahto et al., 2020 | |
| Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici/Tomato Fusarium Wilt | Tomato | siRNA | ODC | Inhibited fungal growth and increased resistance to the pathogen | Singh et al., 2020 | |
| Verticillium dahliae/Verticillium Wilt | Tomato Arabidopsis | hpRNA |
Ave1 Sge1 NLP1 |
Reduced the disease | Song and Thomma, 2018 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Arabidopsis and Barley | dsRNA | CYP51 | Growth inhibition and alteration in fungal morphology | Koch et al., 2013 | |
| Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. conglutinans/Anthracnose | Arabidopsis | dsRNA |
FRP1 FOW2 OPR |
Enhanced disease resistance | Hu et al., 2015 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Arabidopsis | dsRNA |
FgCYP51A FgCYP51 FgCYP51C |
Reduction in infection | Höfle et al., 2020 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Arabidopsis | dsRNA |
CYP51A CYP51B CYP51C |
Inhibited growth of F. graminearum | Koch et al., 2020 | |
| Verticillium dahliae/Verticillium Wilt | Tobacco Arabidopsis |
sRNA | VdAK | Decreased mycelial growth and spore production during abiotic stress | Su et al., 2020 | |
| Phakopsora pachyrhizi/Asian Soybean Rust | Soybean | siRNA |
ATC UN_1 UN_2 UN_3 GCS_H PR_S16 CRP_6 PHR |
Reduced endogenous P. pachyrhizi transcript abundance, fungal biomass accumulation and the development of the disease symptoms; suppressed the expression of target genes | Hu et al., 2020 | |
| Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium graminearum | Soybean | ihpRNA | CYP51B | Mild or no symptoms in leaves and root of three lines of six transgenic lines and better plant development | Perez et al., 2021 | |
| Bremia lactucae/Down Mildew Lettuce | Lettuce | siRNA |
HAM34 CES1 |
Reduced growth and inhibited sporulation of the pathogen | Govindarajulu et al., 2015 | |
| Rhizoctonia solani/Brown Patch | Tall Fescue | dsRNA |
RNApoly Imbs Coh UbiE3 |
Improved resistance against R. solani and reduced lesion size | Zhou et al., 2016 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Purple False Brom | dsRNA |
Fg00677 Fg08731 CYP51 |
Reduced pathogenicity of the fungus | He et al., 2019 | |
| Verticillium dahlia/Verticillium Wilt | Cotton |
VdILV2 VdILV6 |
A dramatic reduction in pathogenicity | Wei et al., 2020 | ||
| Rhizoctonia solani/Sheath Blight | Tomato | dsRNA | RS_CRZ1 | Significant reduction in disease symptoms and the depth of pathogen colonization | Ghosh et al., 2021 | |
| Cytospora chrysosperma/Cytospora Canker | Canadian poplar | Sge1 | Restricted vegetative growth, conidial reduction and lost pathogenicity | Han et al., 2021 | ||
| Arbuscular mycorrhizal | Medicago | RiNLE1 | Suppression of defense−related gene expression and enhanced colonization levels | Wang et al., 2021 | ||
| SIGS | Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Barley | dsRNA |
CYP51A CYP51B CYP51C |
Inhibited the growth of the necrotrophic fungus | Koch et al., 2016 |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Barley | dsRNA |
CYP51A CYP51B CYP51C |
Reduced F. graminearum infection areas | Koch et al., 2020 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Barley | dsRNA |
FgAGO1 FgAGO2 FgDCL1 FgDCL2 |
Reduced inhibition of fungal infection | Werner et al., 2020 | |
| Sclerotinia sclerotiorum/White Mold | Barley | dsRNA |
Ss-ThioR Ss-TIM44 Ss-CHC SS-AP2 Ss-Arf72A Ss-FCHO1 Ss-Amph Ss-VATPase Ss-eGFP |
Significantly reduced pathogen growth on plant | Wytinck et al., 2020 | |
| Hyaloperonospora arabidopsidis (Hpa)/Downy Mildew | Arabidopsis | dsRNA | Hpa-CesA | Inhibited spore germination and infection | Bilir et al., 2019 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Arabidopsis | dsRNA |
FgCYP51A FgCYP51 FgCYP51C |
Increased disease resistance | Höfle et al., 2020 | |
| Botrytis cinerea/Gray Mold Rot | Tomato Strawberry Grape Lettuce Onion Rose Arabidopsis |
sRNAs dsRNA |
Bc-DCL1 Bc-DLC2 |
Inhibition of fungal growth, reduced symptoms of the disease and suppressed fungal DCL transcripts | Wang et al., 2016 | |
| Fusarium graminearum/Fusarium Head Blight | Wheat | dsRNA | Myosin 5 | Reduction in phenamacril-resistance | Song et al., 2018 | |
| F. asiaticum, B. cinerea, Magnaporthe oryzae, Colletotrichum truncatum | Cucumber Soya Barley Wheat |
dsRNA | Faβ2Tub-3 | Decreased resistance to carbendazim fungicide, inhibited fungal growth and lead to crooked and multiple-branching mycelium | Gu et al., 2019 | |
| Botrytis cinerea/Gray Mold Rot | Grapevine | dsRNA |
BcCYP51 Bcchs1 BcEF2 |
Significant reduction in pathogen development | Nerva et al., 2020 | |
| Phakopsora pachyrhizi/Soybean Rust | Soybean | dsRNA |
ATC GCS_H RP_S16 |
Reduction in fungal biomass and a lower number of pustules on leaves | Hu et al., 2020 | |
| Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Rhizoctonia solani, Aspergillus niger, Verticillium dahlia, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Trichoderma virens, Phytophthora infestans | Lettuce Tomato Rose Grape |
dsRNA |
VPS51 DCTN1 SAC1 |
Inhibited the virulence of B. cinerea, S. sclerotiorum, A. niger, R. solani, reduced disease symptoms by V. dahlia, no significant reduction in targeted mRNA expression levels at the P. infestans inoculated, no inhibition of infection of C. gloeosporioides | Qiao et al., 2021 | |
| Phytophthora infestans/Potato Late Blight | Potato | dsRNA |
SDH EF-1α GPI-HAM344 PLD-3 HSP-90 |
Enhanced disease resistance and less sporulation | Sundaresha et al., 2021 | |
| Plasmopara viticola/Grapevine downy mildew | Grapevine | dsRNA | PvDCL1/2 | Reduced disease progress rate | Haile et al., 2021 | |
| Phytophthora infestans/Potato late blight | Potato | dsRNA |
PiGPB1 PiHmp1 PiCut3 PiEndo3 |
Reduction in disease progression | Kalyandurg et al., 2021 |
hpRNA, hairpin RNA; ihpRNA, intron-containing hairpin RNA; miRNA, micro RNA; dsRNA, double-stranded RNA; siRNA, small interfering RNA; asiRNA artificial siRNA.