Induction of Systemic acquired resistance in Mungbean against Mungbean Yellow Mosaic Begomovirus by the exogenous application of Salicylic acid and Benzothiadiazole.

Abstract— The diseases caused by bipartite Begomoviruses have emerged as overwhelming problem in various cropping systems of Pakistan. The study was conducted to evaluate the potential of induced resistance in mungbean to Mungbean yellow mosaic virus (MYMV) disease. In this work, resistance to MYMV infection was induced in mungbean plants by activating the Salicylic acid (SA) pathway using SA and Benzothiadiazole (BTH) as treatments. The resistance was characterized by evaluating symptom appearance and virus titter through ELISA.  Elicitors i.e., SA and BTH were applied at different concentrations to enhance the innate resistance of mungbean by the induction of defense related compounds. All treatments were helpful in reducing plant infection but the most effective treatment was the combination of SA@5mM and BTH@150mg/L as compared to virus inoculated control. Three weeks analysis showed peak accumulation of defense related enzymatic antioxidants and phenols in the mungbean leaves treated with SA and BTH. Higher enzymatic activity was observed in elicitor treated plants followed by inoculation with MYMV. As the resistance increased due to the application of SA & BTH the enzymatic activities of SOD, POD, and CAT were also increased during second week after application of elicitors. This study revealed that SA and BTH are potential source for management of MYMV by enhancing the level of protection through induction of systemic acquired resistance.