Only 2 of 12 now-deleted genes of 19 identified and predicted Myb family DNA binding proteins are directly involved in rice Magnaporthe oryzae pathogenicity

Proteins with DNA binding Myb domains have been suggested in regulating development and stress responses. Magnaporthe oryzae is considered the most destructive pathogen of rice. We screened the genome for genes with Myb domains encoding since these can be needed for pathogenesis. We found Myb1-19. Only MoMyb1 was previously shown to be involved in pathogenesis. We succeeded in deleting 12 of the other 18 genes. MoMyb2 deletion affected mainly growth, while MoMyb13 or MoMyb15 deletions gave additional defects in conidiation and plant infection. However, RT-qPCR showed that none of the 19 Myb genes are negligibly expressed. Instead, they have different expression profiles hours post-infection when infecting rice plants. Considering this, the unchanged infection phenotype for 9 gene deletions surprised us, and we extended the analysis to expression co-regulation of all 19 Myb proteins and found 5 co-regulated groups of predicted Myb-domain proteins. MoMyb13 or MoMyb15 are discussed and motivated as candidates for further, more detailed studies with aims also outside of plant pathology. Referring to what is found in other eukaryotes, we finally discuss possible redundancy or compensatory regulations for many of the other Myb genes hiding or compensating for the effect of many complete deletions. IMPORTANCEMagnaporthe oryzae is considered the most important rice pathogen limiting rice production. Our study attempts to find all genes encoding a DNA-binding gene family called Myb, and we found 19, many of which have not been studied before. The Myb gene family is suspected to regulate stress responses the pathogen needs to overcome plant defenses. Inhibiting or disturbing these genes, if they are indeed regulatory, can open new ways of controlling the pathogen and learning more about its physiology and ecology.