The paper of "Inactivation of β-1,3-glucan synthase-like 5 confers broad-spectrum resistance to Plasmodiophora brassicae pathotypes in cruciferous plants" has been published on Nature Genetics. Congratulations!

On September 1, 2025, a research team led by Liu Shengyi and Liu Lijiang from the Oil Crops Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences published a paper titled “Inactivation of β-1,3-glucan synthase-like 5 confers broad-spectrum resistance to Plasmodiophora brassicae pathotypes in cruciferous plants” in Nature Genetics. The study identified the key determinant underlying susceptibility to clubroot disease in cruciferous crops and established a novel approach for breeding brassica varieties with broad-spectrum resistance. A Research Briefing was simultaneously published in the same issue of Nature Genetics to highlight this work.

After nearly a decade of scientific research, this study has for the first time internationally identified the susceptibility gene GSL5 as the key “culprit” facilitating Plasmodiophora brassicae pathogenesis in cruciferous plants. Previous research established that this gene encodes β-1,3-glucan synthase, whose enzymatic activity is specifically induced upon pathogen infection, leading to the synthesis of β-1,3-glucan at infection sites and positively regulating plant disease resistance. This study, however, uncovered an alternative role for GSL5: it acts as a “controller” for the initiation of the jasmonic acid-mediated defense pathway. The clubroot pathogen exploits this plant mechanism by utilizing its effector protein PbPDIa to stabilize GSL5, thereby completely suppressing the jasmonic acid defense pathway and enhancing its own pathogenicity. Precise knockout of GSL5 via gene editing disrupted the PbPDIa-GSL5 interaction, lifting GSL5’s repression on the jasmonic acid pathway. This enables plants to reactivate jasmonic acid-mediated defenses upon P. brassicae infection, conferring broad-spectrum and high-level resistance. Interestingly, contrary to established plant immunity paradigms, resistance to clubroot occurs internally within the root cortical tissues, rather than at the external epidermal layers. Given the high conservation of GSL5 across cruciferous species, knocking out this gene in oilseed rape, pak choi, and cabbage led to the development of novel germplasms with broad-spectrum, high-level clubroot resistance. Field trials demonstrated that GSL5 knockout has no significant impact on the growth or yield of oilseed rape, highlighting its substantial application potential.

This achievement represents an original and major breakthrough in the identification and utilization of susceptibility genes in cruciferous crops. It challenges the conventional breeding approach for clubroot resistance in oilseed rape, pak choi, and cabbage, which has predominantly relied on interspecific or intraspecific hybridization. Instead, it pioneers a new biotechnological breeding pathway centered on gene editing for enhancing clubroot resistance in cruciferous crops. The research marks a significant theoretical and technological advance in achieving broad-spectrum resistance and establishing effective, durable control strategies against clubroot disease in cruciferous species. This work provides robust scientific and technological support for ensuring China’s autonomy and control over superior genetic resources and seed sources, powerfully demonstrating the continuous enhancement of China’s capacity for original innovation in the seed industry and the development of new quality productive forces.

This research was supported by funding from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) Science and Technology Innovation Project, the National Major Project for Biological Breeding, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), and the Rapeseed Industry Technology System.

Full text article link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41588-025-02306-y