A novel antifungal peptide, SP1.2, from Rhodopseudomonas palustris against the rice blast pathogen

BACKGROUND Rice blast has a significant detrimental impact on rice yields, so developing efficient biological control technologies is an effective means for rice blast prevention and control. The GroEL protein has proven to be effective at preventing and managing the pathogenicity of rice blast. RESULTS Here, we analyzed the amino acid sequence of the GroEL protein and synthesized the ‘60 kDa chaperonin signature’ (350–373 amino acids) peptide SP1.2, which has potent antifungal activity. Notably, the SP1.2 peptide exhibited potent fungicidal activity against Magnaporthe oryzae, effectively inhibiting appressorium germination. Electron microscopy revealed that SP1.2 disrupted the fungal plasma membrane and bound to multiple bioactive phosphoinositides in vitro, triggering the production of reactive oxygen species. Furthermore, it also caused an increase in the acetylation of M. oryzae and induced autophagy in cells. The spray application of SP1.2 significantly reduced the number of disease spots caused by the fungal pathogen M. oryzae in rice, enhancing the defense response of rice plants. Field trials showed that the control effect was 64.59% after spraying SP1.2. CONCLUSION Our study illustrates the antifungal activity of the structurally unique SP1.2 peptide against plant fungal pathogens and paves the way for the future development of this class of peptides as antifungal agents. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. Rice blast has a significant detrimental impact on rice yields. The synthesized peptide SP1.2 exhibited potent fungicidal activity against Magnaporthe oryzae, effectively inhibiting appressorium germination. Spray application of SP1.2 significantly reduced the number of disease spots caused by the fungal pathogen M. oryzae in rice. Field trials showed that SP1.2 has a good control effect on M. oryzae. Meanwhile transcriptional analysis demonstrated that the SP1.2 could improve the expression of defense gene of rice.