Plant materials and V. dahliae proliferation
Seedlings of G. hirsutum cv . YZ1, G. barbadense cv . 7124 and transgenic lines derived from G. hirsutum cv . J668 were grown in a controlled environment chamber under a 16 h light/8 h dark cycle at 25°C for treatment and sampling. V. dahliae strain V991 was cultured on Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) medium for 3~4 days, and hyphae were transferred into Czapek’s medium for 3 days at 25°C to prepare suspension solutions.