scholarly journals How to Unravel the Key Functions of Cryptic Oomycete Elicitin Proteins and Their Role in Plant Disease

Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1201
Author(s):  
Aayushree Kharel ◽  
Md Tohidul Islam ◽  
James Rookes ◽  
David Cahill
Keyword(s):  
Gene Editing ◽  
Plant Disease ◽  
Plant Cells ◽  
Defense Responses ◽  
Plant Defense Responses ◽  
Host Pathogen Interactions ◽  
Binding Ability ◽  
Host Pathogen ◽  
Pathogen Colonization

Pathogens and plants are in a constant battle with one another, the result of which is either the restriction of pathogen growth via constitutive or induced plant defense responses or the pathogen colonization of plant cells and tissues that cause disease. Elicitins are a group of highly conserved proteins produced by certain oomycete species, and their sterol binding ability is recognized as an important feature in sterol–auxotrophic oomycetes. Elicitins also orchestrate other aspects of the interactions of oomycetes with their plant hosts. The function of elicitins as avirulence or virulence factors is controversial and is dependent on the host species, and despite several decades of research, the function of these proteins remains elusive. We summarize here our current understanding of elicitins as either defense-promoting or defense-suppressing agents and propose that more recent approaches such as the use of ‘omics’ and gene editing can be used to unravel the role of elicitins in host–pathogen interactions. A better understanding of the role of elicitins is required and deciphering their role in host–pathogen interactions will expand the strategies that can be adopted to improve disease resistance and reduce crop losses.

scholarly journals An efficient direct screening system for microorganisms that activate plant immune responses based on plant–microbe interactions using cultured plant cells

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mari Kurokawa ◽  
Masataka Nakano ◽  
Nobutaka Kitahata ◽  
Kazuyuki Kuchitsu ◽  
Toshiki Furuya
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Plant Defense ◽  
Pseudomonas Syringae ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Plant Cells ◽  
Defense Responses ◽  
Root Tip ◽  
General Strategy ◽  
Plant Defense Responses ◽  
Microbe Interactions

AbstractMicroorganisms that activate plant immune responses have attracted considerable attention as potential biocontrol agents in agriculture because they could reduce agrochemical use. However, conventional methods to screen for such microorganisms using whole plants and pathogens are generally laborious and time consuming. Here, we describe a general strategy using cultured plant cells to identify microorganisms that activate plant defense responses based on plant–microbe interactions. Microbial cells were incubated with tobacco BY-2 cells, followed by treatment with cryptogein, a proteinaceous elicitor of tobacco immune responses secreted by an oomycete. Cryptogein-induced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in BY-2 cells served as a marker to evaluate the potential of microorganisms to activate plant defense responses. Twenty-nine bacterial strains isolated from the interior of Brassica rapa var. perviridis plants were screened, and 8 strains that enhanced cryptogein-induced ROS production in BY-2 cells were selected. Following application of these strains to the root tip of Arabidopsis seedlings, two strains, Delftia sp. BR1R-2 and Arthrobacter sp. BR2S-6, were found to induce whole-plant resistance to bacterial pathogens (Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 and Pectobacterium carotovora subsp. carotovora NBRC 14082). Pathogen-induced expression of plant defense-related genes (PR-1, PR-5, and PDF1.2) was enhanced by the pretreatment with strain BR1R-2. This cell–cell interaction-based platform is readily applicable to large-scale screening for microorganisms that enhance plant defense responses under various environmental conditions.

Elicitor Recognition and Signal Transduction in Plant Defense Gene Activation

1990 ◽  
Vol 45 (6) ◽  
pp. 569-575 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dierk Scheel ◽  
Jane E. Parker
Keyword(s):  
Signal Transduction ◽  
Plant Defense ◽  
Transcriptional Activation ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Plant Cells ◽  
Defense Responses ◽  
Plant Defense Responses ◽  
Defense Genes ◽  
Plant Defense Genes

Abstract Plants defend themselves against pathogen attack by activating a whole set of defense responses, most of them relying on transcriptional activation of plant defense genes. The same responses are induced by treatment of plant cells with elicitors released from the pathogen or from the plant surface. Several plant/elicitor combinations have been used successfully as experimental systems to investigate the molecular basis of plant defense responses. Receptor-like structures on the plasma membrane of plant cells appear to bind the elicitors. Thereby, intracellular signal transduction chains are initiated which finally result in the activation of plant defense genes. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of early processes in plant defense responses, as provided by these studies, may in the long term help to develop environmentally safe plant protection methods for agriculture.

scholarly journals Role of the PE/PPE Family in Host–Pathogen Interactions and Prospects for Anti-Tuberculosis Vaccine and Diagnostic Tool Design

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianing Qian ◽  
Run Chen ◽  
Honghai Wang ◽  
Xuelian Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Cell Fate ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Cell Interaction ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Host Pathogen Interactions ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Host Pathogen ◽  
Protein Research ◽  
Slow Growing

The pe/ppe genes are found in pathogenic, slow-growing Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other M. tuberculosis complex (MTBC) species. These genes are considered key factors in host-pathogen interactions. Although the function of most PE/PPE family proteins remains unclear, accumulating evidence suggests that this family is involved in M. tuberculosis infection. Here, we review the role of PE/PPE proteins, which are believed to be linked to the ESX system function. Further, we highlight the reported functions of PE/PPE proteins, including their roles in host cell interaction, immune response regulation, and cell fate determination during complex host-pathogen processes. Finally, we propose future directions for PE/PPE protein research and consider how the current knowledge might be applied to design more specific diagnostics and effective vaccines for global tuberculosis control.

scholarly journals RNA-Sequencing Analyses of Small Bacterial RNAs and their Emergence as Virulence Factors in Host-Pathogen Interactions

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 1627 ◽  
Author(s):  
Idrissa Diallo ◽  
Patrick Provost
Keyword(s):  
Rna Sequencing ◽  
Virulence Factors ◽  
Membrane Vesicles ◽  
Outer Membrane Vesicles ◽  
Rna Seq ◽  
Host Pathogen Interactions ◽  
Bioinformatics Analyses ◽  
Additional Layer ◽  
Host Pathogen

Proteins have long been considered to be the most prominent factors regulating so-called invasive genes involved in host-pathogen interactions. The possible role of small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs), either intracellular, secreted or packaged in outer membrane vesicles (OMVs), remained unclear until recently. The advent of high-throughput RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) techniques has accelerated sRNA discovery. RNA-seq radically changed the paradigm on bacterial virulence and pathogenicity to the point that sRNAs are emerging as an important, distinct class of virulence factors in both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The potential of OMVs, as protectors and carriers of these functional, gene regulatory sRNAs between cells, has also provided an additional layer of complexity to the dynamic host-pathogen relationship. Using a non-exhaustive approach and through examples, this review aims to discuss the involvement of sRNAs, either free or loaded in OMVs, in the mechanisms of virulence and pathogenicity during bacterial infection. We provide a brief overview of sRNA origin and importance and describe the classical and more recent methods of identification that have enabled their discovery, with an emphasis on the theoretical lower limit of RNA sizes considered for RNA sequencing and bioinformatics analyses.

scholarly journals Host-Pathogen Interactions: The Role of Iron

2007 ◽  
Vol 137 (5) ◽  
pp. 1341-1344 ◽  
Author(s):  
Conor P. Doherty
Keyword(s):  
Host Pathogen Interactions ◽  
Host Pathogen
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