Response of Arabidopsis thaliana to 22 ALS inhibitors: baseline toxicity and cross-resistance of csr1-1 and csr1-2 resistant mutants

The baseline toxicity of 22 acetolactate synthase (ALS)-inhibiting herbicides and the cross-resistance patterns of chlorsulfuron- and imazapyr-resistant (R) lines on these 22 ALS-inhibiting herbicides were investigated using the model species Arabidopsis thaliana. The 22 herbicides consisted of 18 sulfonylureas (SU), three imidazolinones (IMI) and one triazolopyrimidine (TP). The ED₅₀ values (doses of herbicides required to reduce dry matter by 50%) of the post-emergence-treated Col and Ler susceptible (S) lines ranged from 22 to 4822 mg ha⁻¹ and from 17 to 3143 mg ha⁻¹ respectively. The csr1-1 chlorsulfuron-resistant line (substitution of Pro₁₉₇ to Ser) conferred a high resistance to the only TP tested as well as to nine SU herbicides (R:S ratio ≥30), a low resistance to two SU herbicides (R:S≥5 and <30) and little or no resistance to the three IMI and seven other SU herbicides (R:S <5). This result contradicts the expectation that an ALS mutation selected by an SU herbicide confers high cross-resistance to other SU herbicides. We found that the efficacy of specific ALS inhibitors was different for different species and therefore could not be predicted from our results with A. thaliana; however, the cross-resistance patterns in A. thaliana were highly correlated with cross-resistance patterns in unrelated species with the same resistance mutation. These results have implications for resistance management.     

Cross‐resistance of Echinochloa species to acetolactate synthase inhibitor herbicides

This study was conducted to evaluate the cross‐resistance of acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors with different chemistries, specifically azimsulfuron (sulfonylurea), penoxsulam (triazolopyrimidine sulfonanilide) and bispyribac‐sodium (pyrimidinyl thio benzoate), in Echinochloa oryzicola and Echinochloa crus‐galli that had been collected in South Korea and to investigate their herbicide resistance mechanism. Both Echinochloa spp. showed cross‐resistance to the ALS inhibitors belonging to the above three different chemistries. In a whole plant assay with herbicides alone, the resistant/susceptible ratios for azimsulfuron, penoxsulam and bispyribac‐sodium were 12.6, 28.1 and 1.9 in E. oryzicola and 21.1, 13.7 and 1.8 in E. crus‐galli, respectively. An in vitro ALS enzyme assay with herbicides showed that the I ₅₀‐values of the resistant accessions were approximately two‐to‐three times higher than the susceptible accessions, with no statistical difference, suggesting that the difference in ALS sensitivity cannot explain ALS inhibitor resistance in Echinochloa spp. for azimsulfuron, penoxsulam and bispyribac‐sodium. A whole plant assay with fenitrothion showed that the GR ₅₀‐values significantly decreased in both the resistant E. oryzicola and E. crus‐galli accessions when azimsulfuron, penoxsulam and bispyribac‐sodium were applied with the P450 inhibitor, while no significant decrease was observed in the susceptible accessions when the P450 inhibitor was used. Thus, these results suggest that ALS inhibitor cross‐resistance for azimsulfuron, penoxsulam and bispyribac‐sodium is related to enhanced herbicide metabolism.     

Molecular characterisation of resistance to ALS-inhibiting herbicides in Hordeum leporinum biotypes

BACKGROUND: The acetolactate synthase (ALS)-inhibiting herbicide sulfosulfuron is registered in Australia for the selective control of Hordeum leporinum Link. in wheat crops. This herbicide failed to control H. leporinum on two farms in Western Australia on its first use. This study aimed to determine the level of resistance of three H. leporinum biotypes, identify the biochemical and molecular basis and develop molecular markers for diagnostic analysis of the resistance. RESULTS: Dose-response studies revealed very high level (>340-fold) resistance to the sulfonylurea herbicides sulfosulfuron and sulfometuron. In vitro ALS assays revealed that resistance was due to reduced sensitivity of the ALS enzyme to herbicide inhibition. This altered ALS sensitivity in the resistant biotypes was found to be due to a mutation in the ALS gene resulting in amino acid proline to serine substitution at position 197. In addition, two- to threefold higher ALS activities were consistently found in the resistant biotypes, compared with the known susceptible biotype. Two cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence (CAPS) markers were developed for diagnostic testing of the resistant populations. CONCLUSION: This study established the first documented case of evolved ALS inhibitor resistance in H. leporinum and revealed that the molecular basis of resistance is due to a Pro to Ser mutation in the ALS gene.     

A novel amino acid substitution Ala-122-Tyr in ALS confers high-level and broad resistance across ALS-inhibiting herbicides

BACKGROUND: Wild radish, a problem weed worldwide, is a severe dicotyledonous weed in crops. In Australia, sustained reliance on ALS‐inhibiting herbicides to control this species has led to the evolution of many resistant populations endowed by any of several ALS mutations. The molecular basis of ALS‐inhibiting herbicide resistance in a novel resistant population was studied. RESULTS: ALS gene sequencing revealed a previously unreported substitution of Tyr for Ala at amino acid position 122 in resistant individuals of a wild radish population (WARR30). A purified subpopulation individually homozygous for the Ala‐122‐Tyr mutation was generated and characterised in terms of its response to the different chemical classes of ALS‐inhibiting herbicides. Whole‐plant dose‐response studies showed that the purified subpopulation was highly resistant to chlorsulfuron, metosulam and imazamox, with LD₅₀ or GR₅₀ R/S ratio of > 1024, > 512 and > 137 respectively. The resistance to imazypyr was found to be relatively moderate (but still substantial), with LD₅₀ and GR₅₀ R/S ratios of > 16 and > 7.8 respectively. In vitro ALS activity assays showed that Ala‐122‐Tyr ALS was highly resistant to all tested ALS‐inhibiting herbicides. CONCLUSION: The molecular basis of ALS‐inhibiting herbicide resistance in wild radish population WARR30 was identified to be due to an Ala‐122‐Tyr mutation in the ALS gene. This is the first report of an amino acid substitution at Ala‐122 in the plant ALS that confers high‐level and broad‐spectrum resistance to ALS‐inhibiting herbicides, a remarkable contrast to the known mutation Ala‐122‐Thr endowing resistance to imidazolinone herbicide. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

Mutations of the ALS gene endowing resistance to ALS-inhibiting herbicides in Lolium rigidum populations

BACKGROUND: In the important grass weed Lolium rigidum (Gaud.), resistance to ALS‐inhibiting herbicides has evolved widely in Australia. The authors have previously characterised the biochemical basis of ALS herbicide resistance in a number of L. rigidum biotypes and established that resistance can be due to a resistant ALS and/or enhanced herbicide metabolism. The purpose of this study was to identify specific resistance‐endowing ALS gene mutation(s) in four resistant populations and to develop PCR‐based molecular markers. RESULTS: Six resistance‐conferring ALS mutations were identified: Pro‐197‐Ala, Pro‐197‐Arg, Pro‐197‐Gln, Pro‐197‐Leu, Pro‐197‐Ser and Trp‐574‐Leu. All six mutations were found in one population (WLR1). Each Pro‐197 mutation conferred resistance to the sulfonylurea (SU) herbicide sulfometuron, whereas the Trp‐574‐Leu mutation conferred resistance to both sulfometuron and the imidazolinone (IMS) herbicide imazapyr. A derived cleaved amplified polymorphic sequences (dCAPS) marker was developed for detecting resistance mutations at Pro‐197. Furthermore, cleaved amplified polymorphic sequences (CAPS) markers were developed for detecting each of the six mutant resistant alleles. Using these markers, the authors revealed diverse ALS‐resistant alleles and genotypes in these populations and related them directly to phenotypic resistance to ALS‐inhibiting herbicides. CONCLUSION: This study established the existence of a diversity of ALS gene mutations endowing resistance in L. rigidum populations: 1–6 different mutations were found within single populations. At field herbicide rates, resistance profiles were determined more by the specific mutation than by whether plants were homo‐ or heterozygous for the mutation. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Occurrence of sulfonylurea resistance in Sagittaria trifolia,a basal monocot species,based on target‐site and non‐target‐site resistance

Sagittaria trifolia L. is one of the most serious weeds in paddy fields in Japan. Since the late 1990s, severe infestations of S. trifolia have occurred following applications of sulfonylurea herbicides in Akita prefecture. In this study, two accessions of S. trifolia, R1 and R2, were collected from paddy fields with severe infestations and their resistance profiles were determined in comparison to a susceptible accession, S1. R1 and R2 were highly resistant to bensulfuron‐methyl. R1 was also highly resistant to pyrazosulfuron‐ethyl, but R2 was susceptible. Relative to S1, R1 had an amino acid substitution at the Pro₁₉₇ residue of acetolactate synthase (ALS), a well‐known mutation that confers sulfonylurea resistance, suggesting that R1 has a target‐site‐based resistance (TSR) mechanism. The sequence of the ALS gene in R2 was identical to that in S1. A Southern blot analysis indicated that there was only one copy of the ALS gene in S1 and R2. These results suggest that R2 has a non‐target‐site‐based resistance (NTSR) mechanism. R2 was moderately resistant to imazosulfuron but susceptible to thifensulfuron‐methyl. R2 and S1 were susceptible to pretilachlor, benfuresate, MCPA‐ethyl and bentazon. The results reveal the occurrence of two sulfonylurea‐resistant biotypes of S. trifolia that show different mechanisms of cross‐resistance to sulfonylureas related to TSR in R1 and NTSR in R2.     

Selection for resistance to the herbicide imazethapyr in somaclones of soyabean

Cultivars of soyabean [ Glycine max (L.) Merr.] resistant to the herbicide imazethapyr were identified by suspending the roots of 5-day-old seedlings in nutrient culture containing 2.5 mg a.i. L^–1 imazethapyr and then comparing the inhibitory effect on root length and shoot dry weight. The four most resistant cultivars were subsequently screened as regenerating tissue cultures in a medium containing 2.0 mg a.i. L^–l imazethapyr to select somaclonal cells with increased resistance. Surviving portions of cultures were regenerated to give shoots, the plants isolated, allowed to flower and seed. These progeny were then used for further seed multiplication and seedlings from this latter generation were exposed to imazethapyr in vivo and callus and cell suspension cultures derived from these seedlings were exposed to imazethapyr in vitro . A reduction in the inhibitory effect of the imazethapyr was noted in the somaclone seedlings and tissue cultures. However, measurement of acetolactate synthase (ALS) activity showed no differences among the parent cultivars and in the selected somaclones in this trait.     

Biology and mechanisms of sulfonylurea resistance in Schoenoplectiella juncoides,a noxious sedge in the rice paddy fields of Japan

Schoenoplectiella juncoides is a noxious sedge weed in rice paddy fields that has evolved resistance to sulfonylurea (SU) herbicides. The molecular basis of resistance is amino acid substitutions at Pro₁₉₇, Trp₅₇₄ or Asp₃₇₆ in the acetolactate synthase (ALS) enzyme, which is the target of SUs. Schoenoplectiella juncoides has two ALS genes and resistant plants have point mutations that cause amino acid substitutions in either encoded protein. Single‐nucleotide substitutions at the codon for Pro₁₉₇ in the ALS genes can cause six types of amino acid substitutions and all of these substitutions have been found in both ALS genes among Japanese SU‐resistant biotypes. Whole‐plant herbicide responses differ among the amino acid substitution types. Furthermore, analyses of ALS activity in plant extracts show that the extracts’ responses to herbicides differ, depending on which ALS gene is mutated. The activity responses of the ALS extracts to the SU, imazosulfuron, showed double‐sigmoid curves with plateaus of ~30% inhibition for Pro₁₉₇ substitutions in ALS1 and ~70% for Pro₁₉₇ substitutions in ALS2. This indicates that ALS1 and ALS2 contribute to the responses with a proportion of 7:3. The double‐sigmoid curves can be reconstructed to show the responses of the resistant and susceptible enzymes separately by regression analysis. The resistance levels of the separate ALS1 or ALS2 mutated enzyme are highly correlated with the whole‐plant responses, with a relationship that the former is the square of the latter. This could provide a quantitative insight into the physiological basis of resistance.     

Estimating the outcrossing rate of Cyperus difformis using resistance to ALS-inhibiting herbicides and molecular markers

Cyperus difformis (smallflower umbrella sedge) is an economically important weed of rice in California where its control has recently been complicated by the evolution of herbicide resistance. Knowledge of the mating system of this weed is needed to elucidate the dynamics of resistance evolution and to design mitigation strategies that delay its occurrence. The aim of this study was to estimate the outcrossing rate of C. difformis using molecular and phenotypic markers. Outcrossing rates were estimated in natural field populations using sequence-related amplified polymorphism (SRAP) molecular markers and in glasshouse and field experiments using resistance to the acetolactate synthase-inhibiting herbicide bensulfuron-methyl as a phenotypic marker. Using SRAP markers, the multilocus ( t _m) and average single-locus ( t _s) outcrossing rates varied from 0.014 to 0.025 and from 0.008 to 0.012, respectively, among natural weed populations in rice fields. Using resistance to bensulfuron-methyl as a genetic marker, the average C. difformis outcrossing rate estimated was 0.009 in the glasshouse and 0.0084 in the field. These results indicate that C. difformis is a highly self-fertilising species. Therefore, the primary mechanism by which genes for herbicide resistance can be transferred among C. difformis populations in different rice fields is probably seed dispersal. Weed management should emphasise prevention of seed production and dispersal to preclude the further spread and evolution of resistance in C. difformis .     

A molecular assay for the proactive detection of target site-based resistance to herbicides inhibiting acetolactate synthase in Alopecurus myosuroides

Acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors are the most resistance‐prone herbicide group. Rapid resistance diagnosis is thus of importance for their optimal use. We formulate rules to use the derived cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence method to develop molecular tools detecting a change at a given codon, the nature of which is unknown. We applied them to Alopecurus myosuroides (black grass) to develop assays targeting ALS codons A122, P197, A205, W574 and S653 that are crucial for herbicide sensitivity. These assays detected W574L or P197T, or both substitutions, in most plants analysed from a field where ALS inhibitors failed after 3 years of use. Similar assays can easily be set up for any species. Given the rapidity of selection for resistance to ALS inhibitors, these assays should be very useful in proactive herbicide resistance diagnosis.     

A European biotype of Amaranthus retroflexus cross-resistant to ALS inhibitors and response to alternative herbicides

An acetolactate synthase (ALS)‐resistant Amaranthus retroflexus biotype was collected in a soyabean crop after repeated exposure to imazethapyr and thifensulfuron‐methyl in north‐eastern Italy. Studies were conducted to characterise the resistance status and determine alternative post‐emergence herbicides for controlling this biotype. Whole‐plant bioassay revealed that the GR₅₀ values were 1898‐ and 293‐fold higher than those observed for the biotype susceptible to imazethapyr and imazamox respectively. The biotype also displayed high cross‐resistance to sulfonylureas. Molecular analysis demonstrated that a single nucleotide substitution had occurred in domain B (TGG to TTG at position 574), conferring a change from the amino acid tryptophan to leucine in the resistant biotype. However, herbicides with other modes of action (PSII, 4‐HPPD and PPO inhibitors) provided excellent control. The GR₅₀ ratios for metribuzin, terbuthylazine and mesotrione were close to 1 and treatments with fomesafen gave 100% control of both susceptible and resistant biotypes at the recommended field dose. This study documents the first case of an imidazolinone and ALS‐resistant biotype in European crops and identifies the post‐emergence herbicide options available for managing this troublesome weed in soyabean crops. Alternative management strategies are also discussed.