Identification of calmodulin-dependent NAD+ kinase that sustains the elicitor-induced oxidative burst (Plant Phys)
Plant Science Research WeeklyWhen pathogens attack, one line of defense is the production of a burst of reactive oxygen species (ROS) which triggers additional defences. ROS is produced by the action of NADPH oxidases, which require NADPH as a substrate; NADPH is derived from NADP+, but where does this come from? Previous studies…
A single amino-acid substitution impairs PTI and ETI in an SA-dependent manner in rice ($) (Plant Physiol)
Plant Science Research WeeklyPlants possess two immune strategies to prevent invasion by pathogens called pattern-triggered immunity (PTI, typically mediated by cell-surface receptors) and effector-triggered immunity (ETI). During ETI, intracellular resistance (R) proteins perceive specific pathogen effectors. Tang et al. describe…
TurboID-based proximity labeling reveals that UBR7 is a regulator of N NLR immune receptor-mediated immunity (Nature Comms)
Plant Science Research WeeklyIdentification of protein- protein interactions helps understand the signaling cascade in multiple biological process including development, biotic and abiotic stress. Previously, a proximity-based labelling approach referred to as BioID had been used to identify proteins in close proximity to a protein…
Reconstituting an NLR cell death branch (Plant Cell)
Plant Science Research WeeklyArabidopsis genetics has identified numerous genes required for pathogen perception and defense response activation. Some of these genes are functionally conserved across plants and others are not. Toll-Interleukin1-Receptor (TIR)-domain NLRs (TNLs) are immune receptors that function upstream of EDS1…
An N- terminal motif in NLR immune receptors is functionally conserved across distantly related plant species (bioRxiv)
Plant Science Research WeeklyPlants have robust NLR (nucleotide-binding, leucine-rich repeat proteins) immune signaling networks consisting of sensor NLRs and helper NLRs that counteract diverse plant pathogens by inducing cell death at sites of pathogen infection. A recent preprint by Adachi et al. has defined an N terminal motif…
A calmodulin-gated calcium channel links pathogen patterns to plant immunity ($) (Nature)
Plant Science Research WeeklyCalcium ions mediate calcium-based defense responses in pattern triggered immunity (PTI) upon detection of pathogen patterns by plant surface receptors. A new study by Tian et al. has elucidated the molecular events that activate the calcium response. The authors show that adequeate calcium nutrient…
Conserved biochemical defenses underpin host responses to oomycete infection in liverwort (Curr Biol)
Plant Science Research WeeklyMarchantia polymorpha is an emerging model for plant molecular biology and has contributed to studies on development and plant-microbe interactions. Here, using RNA-seq and proteomics, Carella et al. present a detailed time-course analysis of Marchantia molecular responses to pathogen infection triggered…
A liverwort-Pseudomonas interaction reveals an ancient plant defensive mechanism (Curr Biol)
Plant Science Research WeeklyPlants are sessile organisms that have evolved sophisticated immune systems in defense of pathogens, thus maximizing the chance of survival. Most of our understanding of plant defenses comes from studies in angiosperms. Evolutionary molecular plant-microbe interactions (EvoMPMI) can reveal the origins…
The EDS1-SAG101 complex regulates TNL-based immunity in Solanaceous plants (Plant Cell)
Plant Science Research WeeklyMicrobial pathogens secrete virulence effector proteins into host cells to suppress basal plant defenses. Plant resistance (R) receptors induce robust immune signaling after directly or indirectly detect such effector-mediated host manipulation. In Arabidopsis, immunity transduced through many TNL (TIR-NBS-LRR)…