Abstract Witches' broom disease (WBD), caused by the hemibiotrophic fungus
Moniliophthora perniciosa, is one of the most devastating diseases of Theobroma cacao, the
chocolate tree. In contrast to other hemibiotrophic interactions, the WBD biotrophic stage
lasts for months and is responsible for the most distinctive symptoms of the disease, which
comprise drastic morphological changes in the infected shoots. Here, we used the dual RNA-
seq approach to simultaneously assess the transcriptomes of cacao and M. perniciosa …

Background Nitrogen (N) is a main nutrient required for tree growth and biomass
accumulation. In this study, we analyzed the effects of contrasting nitrogen fertilization
treatments on the phenotypes of fast growing Eucalyptus hybrids (E. urophylla x E. grandis)
with a special focus on xylem secondary cell walls and global gene expression patterns.
Results Histological observations of the xylem secondary cell walls further confirmed by
chemical analyses showed that lignin was reduced by luxuriant fertilization, whereas a …