Meta-Transcriptomic Integration Identifies Conserved Defense Modules and Potential Molecular Markers for Fusarium Resistance Across Southeast Asian Crops

This study integrated 13 transcriptomic datasets, representing seven major Southeast Asian crops (banana, rice, wheat, garlic, chickpea, tomato, and common bean) challenged by six Fusarium lineages to identify conserved resistance mechanisms.Harmonizing gene expression profiles into six functional defense modules was successful before evaluation using a diversity-weighted recurrence approach.A conserved defense core's identification consisted of salicylic acid-jasmonic acid (SA-JA) signaling (score = 11.5),phenylpropanoid-lignin metabolism (10.0), and reactive oxygen species (ROS) detoxification (9.5), consistently enriched in resistant interactions.These modules coordinated key regulatory genes, including WRKY, ERF, MYB, and NPR1, together with downstream defense effectors involved in lignification, antioxidant activity, and pathogenesis-related responses.Additional contributions from RNA interference and cell wall-apoplast remodeling indicated adaptive, contextdependent defense layers operating across specific host-pathogen systems.Based on cross-system recurrence patterns, NPR1, WRKY33/70, ERF071, PAL, SOD, and PR genes emerged as promising candidate markers for resistance breeding.This study provides the first cross-crop metatranscriptomic synthesis of Fusarium resistance in Southeast Asian cropping systems and establishes a conserved defense framework with potential applications in marker-assisted breeding and transcriptbased diagnostics.