Collection 10 March 2023

Molecular basis of plant-pathogen interactions

Submission status: Closed
Submission deadline: 31 March 2024

Plants use sophisticated molecular machinery to distinguish friend from foe, co-exist with other organisms and defend against pathogens. Similarly, plant pathogens have evolved intricate strategies to circumvent plant defenses and cause disease. Studies into the molecular basis of how plants and pathogens interact can inform strategies for crop protection against existing and emerging threats and new technologies allow these interactions to be shown in ever greater mechanistic detail. The editors of Nature Communications and Communications Biology invite submissions of primary research that showcase the molecular basis for how plants and their pathogens interact.

Articles

Commensal lifestyle regulated by a negative feedback loop between Arabidopsis ROS and the bacterial T2SS

The plant immune output reactive oxygen species tames a detrimental bacterial commensal from native microbiota by suppressing a bacterial secretion system, allowing the co-existence and turning it into a beneficial bacterium to the host.
- Frederickson Entila
- Xiaowei Han
- Kenichi Tsuda
ArticleOpen Access11 Jan 2024 Nature Communications
bacLIFE: a user-friendly computational workflow for genome analysis and prediction of lifestyle-associated genes in bacteria

Many bacteria live in close association with eukaryotic hosts, exhibiting detrimental, neutral or beneficial effects on host growth and health. Here, the authors present a streamlined computational workflow for bacterial genome annotation, large-scale comparative genomics, and prediction of genes potentially involved in niche adaptation.
- Guillermo Guerrero-Egido
- Adrian Pintado
- Víctor J. Carrión
ArticleOpen Access7 Mar 2024 Nature Communications
A plant NLR receptor employs ABA central regulator PP2C-SnRK2 to activate antiviral immunity

Huang et al. show how plant Sw-5b NLR mimics the ABA receptor to activate ABA-dependent antiviral immunity via the PP2C-SnRK2 complex. They reveal that Sw-5b NLR induces ABA accumulation, upregulates ABA response genes, and triggers defense against viral infections by releasing SnRK2 from PP2C inhibition.
- Shen Huang
- Chunli Wang
- Xiaorong Tao
ArticleOpen Access13 Apr 2024 Nature Communications
Evolutionary trajectory of pattern recognition receptors in plants

Plant cell-surface receptors perceive both self- and nonself-molecules to regulate biological processes. Here the authors show that a subclass of phytohormone and immune receptors share a common origin, which have diverged to perceive distinct ligands and activate differential downstream responses.
- Bruno Pok Man Ngou
- Michele Wyler
- Ken Shirasu
ArticleOpen Access1 Feb 2024 Nature Communications
A plant cell death-inducing protein from litchi interacts with Peronophythora litchii pectate lyase and enhances plant resistance

The plant apoplastic space is a critical battlefield in plant-microbe interactions. Here, the authors show that a positive regulator of plant immunity PIP1 recognizes pectate lysates secreted by oomycetes and elicits immunity via SERK3.
- Wen Li
- Peng Li
- Zide Jiang
ArticleOpen Access2 Jan 2024 Nature Communications
Magnaporthe oryzae effector MoSPAB1 directly activates rice Bsr-d1 expression to facilitate pathogenesis

Magnaporthe oryzae effector MoSPAB1 enters rice nuclei to bind to the promoter of the immunity-brake gene Bsr-d1 and activates its expression by competing with rice MYBS1, which constitute a conserved module that facilitates fungal pathogenesis.
- Ziwei Zhu
- Jun Xiong
- Weitao Li
ArticleOpen Access18 Dec 2023 Nature Communications
Loss-of-function of an α-SNAP gene confers resistance to soybean cyst nematode

Here, the authors show that the soybean GmSNAP02 gene confers a unique mode of resistance to the soybean cyst nematode Heterodera glycines through loss-of-function mutations that implicate GmSNAP02 as a nematode virulence target.
- Mariola Usovsky
- Vinavi A. Gamage
- Andrew M. Scaboo
ArticleOpen Access22 Nov 2023 Nature Communications
A papain-like cysteine protease-released small signal peptide confers wheat resistance to wheat yellow mosaic virus

Soil-borne wheat yellow mosaic virus (WYMV) poses a serious threat to global wheat production. Here, the authors report that the nuclear inclusion protease-a produced by WYMV interacts with a small peptide catalyzed by TaRD21A protease activity to mediate WYMV resistance through activating MAPK signaling pathway.
- Peng Liu
- Chaonan Shi
- Jian Yang
ArticleOpen Access27 Nov 2023 Nature Communications
Polyethyleneimine-coated MXene quantum dots improve cotton tolerance to Verticillium dahliae by maintaining ROS homeostasis

Verticillum wilt is an important cotton disease caused by fungal pathogen Verticillium dahiae. Here, the authors assemble the genomes of defoliating and non-defoliating isolates of the pathogen, identify virulence gene SP3, and develop a disease control strategy using polyethyleneimine-coated MXene quantum dots.
- Ping Qiu
- Jiayue Li
- Longfu Zhu
ArticleOpen Access15 Nov 2023 Nature Communications
Single amino acid change alters specificity of the multi-allelic wheat stem rust resistance locus SR9

Among all wheat rust resistance genes, SR9 has the largest number of alleles. Here, the authors use gene cloning, complementation and comparative genetics to resolve the relationship among Sr9 alleles, confirm their allelic identities, and show that a single amino acid change leads to resistance to Ug99.
- Jianping Zhang
- Jayaveeramuthu Nirmala
- Evans Lagudah
ArticleOpen Access14 Nov 2023 Nature Communications
A transcriptional activator effector of Ustilago maydis regulates hyperplasia in maize during pathogen-induced tumor formation

Ustilago maydis causes tumor on maize seedlings. Here we show that U. maydis secrets the transcriptional activator effector Sts2 to induce leaf developmental regulators which activate the bundle sheath cell division for tumor formation.
- Weiliang Zuo
- Jasper R. L. Depotter
- Gunther Doehlemann
ArticleOpen Access23 Oct 2023 Nature Communications
Endocytosis-mediated entry of a caterpillar effector into plants is countered by Jasmonate

The authors find that cotton bollworms secrete effectors into plant to weaken JA signaling via host endocytosis system while JA inhibits endocytosis to restrict effector imports. The defense and counter-defense loop between effector and JA reflects a robust arms race between plant and insect.
- Zi-Wei Yan
- Fang-Yan Chen
- Ying-Bo Mao
ArticleOpen Access17 Oct 2023 Nature Communications
Cloning of the wheat leaf rust resistance gene Lr47 introgressed from Aegilops speltoides

Leaf rust is one of the most severe foliar diseases of wheat. Here, the authors report the cloning of Lr47, a broadly effective leaf rust resistance gene introgressed into wheat from Aegilops speltoides, and show it encodes a coiled-coil nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat protein.
- Hongna Li
- Lei Hua
- Shisheng Chen
ArticleOpen Access28 Sep 2023 Nature Communications
Defense against phytopathogens relies on efficient antimicrobial protein secretion mediated by the microtubule-binding protein TGNap1

Defining plant defense machinery against pathogens is significant in cell biology and crop yield. TGNap1, a TGN and microtubule-binding protein, is required for defense and efficient anti-microbial protein secretion, linking secretion and cytoskeleton.
- Deepak D. Bhandari
- Dae Kwan Ko
- Federica Brandizzi
ArticleOpen Access11 Oct 2023 Nature Communications
AlphaFold-Multimer predicts cross-kingdom interactions at the plant-pathogen interface

AlphaFold-Multimer was used to screen of 1,879 small secreted proteins from plant pathogens to be inhibitors of six tomato defense enzymes. Four of these inhibit subtilase P69B, showing the use of AI to predict cross-kingdom protein interactions.
- Felix Homma
- Jie Huang
- Renier A. L. van der Hoorn
ArticleOpen Access27 Sep 2023 Nature Communications
Ustilago maydis PR-1-like protein has evolved two distinct domains for dual virulence activities

Plant PR-1 proteins participate in defense responses against pathogens. Here, the authors show that PR-1-like proteins from the plant pathogenic fungus Ustilago maydis are important for virulence by detecting plant-derived phenolics and modulating plant PR-1-mediated defenses.
- Yu-Han Lin
- Meng-Yun Xu
- Lay-Sun Ma
ArticleOpen Access16 Sep 2023 Nature Communications
Myxobacteria restrain Phytophthora invasion by scavenging thiamine in soybean rhizosphere via outer membrane vesicle-secreted thiaminase I

The plant pathogen Phytophthora sojae requires exogenous thiamine for growth. Here, Li et al. show that soil myxobacteria inhibit Phytophthora’s growth by scavenging thiamine through the secretion a thiaminase via outer membrane vesicles.
- Chengyao Xia
- Yuqiang Zhao
- Zhongli Cui
ArticleOpen Access13 Sep 2023 Nature Communications
Divergent sequences of tetraspanins enable plants to specifically recognize microbe-derived extracellular vesicles

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are important in plant-microbe interactions. Here we show that the divergent sequences within tetraspanins localized at EV membranes enable plant innate immune system to distinguish between self and non-self EVs.
- Jinyi Zhu
- Qian Qiao
- Yuanchao Wang
ArticleOpen Access12 Aug 2023 Nature Communications
Autophagy promotes jasmonate-mediated defense against nematodes

Autophagy plays a critical role in plant immunity. Here the authors show that in tomato, autophagy promotes defense against root-knot nematodes by promoting degradation of negative regulators of jasmonic acid signaling.
- Jinping Zou
- Xinlin Chen
- Jie Zhou
ArticleOpen Access8 Aug 2023 Nature Communications
XCP1 cleaves Pathogenesis-related protein 1 into CAPE9 for systemic immunity in Arabidopsis

The protein PR1 is crucial for plant immunity but has unclear bioactivity. Here PR1 is shown to release a phytocytokine CAPE and trigger systemic acquired resistance (SAR) via a caspase-like enzyme specific for CAPE production (ESCAPE).
- Ying-Lan Chen
- Fan-Wei Lin
- Yet-Ran Chen
ArticleOpen Access4 Aug 2023 Nature Communications
BIK1 protein homeostasis is maintained by the interplay of different ubiquitin ligases in immune signaling

The cytoplasmic kinase BIK1 plays a central role in immune signaling and its protein homeostasis is maintained by the interplay of the ubiquitin ligases RGLG1/2 and PUB25 - RGLG1/2 suppress PUB25-mediated BIK1 protein degradation.
- Jiaojiao Bai
- Yuanyuan Zhou
- Dongping Lu
ArticleOpen Access2 Aug 2023 Nature Communications
DeSUMOylation of a Verticillium dahliae enolase facilitates virulence by derepressing the expression of the effector VdSCP8

Verticillium dahliae, a soil-borne fungal pathogen, causes vascular wilt in a wide variety of economically important crops. This study reveals a sophisticated pathogenic mechanism of VdUlpB-deSUMOylated enolase to facilate fungal virulence by derepressing the expression of the effector VdSCP8.
- Xue-Ming Wu
- Bo-Sen Zhang
- Hui-Shan Guo
ArticleOpen Access10 Aug 2023 Nature Communications
Differential CaKAN3-CaHSF8 associations underlie distinct immune and heat responses under high temperature and high humidity conditions

The authors reveal a mechanism in understanding the responses to Ralstonia solanacearum in pepper under high temperature and high humidity conditions, that is differential associations between transcription factors mediate distinct immune and heat responses.
- Sheng Yang
- Weiwei Cai
- Shuilin He
ArticleOpen Access25 Jul 2023 Nature Communications
The OsSGS3-tasiRNA-OsARF3 module orchestrates abiotic-biotic stress response trade-off in rice

Gu et al. report that the OsSGS3-tasiRNA-OsARF3 module plays an important role in coordinating the trade-off between heat tolerance and disease resistance, which positively regulates thermotolerance but negatively modulates immunity in rice.
- Xueting Gu
- Fuyan Si
- Junzhong Liu
ArticleOpen Access24 Jul 2023 Nature Communications
Fungal small RNAs ride in extracellular vesicles to enter plant cells through clathrin-mediated endocytosis

Fungal pathogen Botrytis cinerea can send sRNAs to plant cells to suppress plant immunity. Here the authors demonstrate that B. cinerea utilizes extracellular vesicles (EVs) to secrete Bc-sRNAs, which are then internalized by plant cells through clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME).
- Baoye He
- Huan Wang
- Hailing Jin
ArticleOpen Access20 Jul 2023 Nature Communications
Sequencing trait-associated mutations to clone wheat rust-resistance gene YrNAM

Wheat stripe (yellow) rust is a devastating disease posing a threat to global production. Here, the authors report the cloning of a wheat stripe rust resistance gene encoding a protein with a NAM domain and a ZnF-BED domain using a strategy called sequencing trait-associated mutations (STAM).
- Fei Ni
- Yanyan Zheng
- Jiajie Wu
ArticleOpen Access19 Jul 2023 Nature Communications
A Phytophthora receptor-like kinase regulates oospore development and can activate pattern-triggered plant immunity

LRR-RLKs are also widespread in plants and oomycete pathogens. Here, the authors report that an LRR-RLK from Phytophthora sojae can activate pattern-triggered immunity in host soybean and nonhost tomato and Nicotiana benthamiana plants.
- Yong Pei
- Peiyun Ji
- Daolong Dou
ArticleOpen Access31 Jul 2023 Nature Communications
Generation of the transgene-free canker-resistant Citrus sinensis using Cas12a/crRNA ribonucleoprotein in the T0 generation

Development of canker-resistant citrus cultivars via traditional approaches is a lengthy and laborious process. Here, the authors report the generation of regulatory approval, transgene-free, canker-resistant sweet orange lines using Cas12a/crRNA ribonucleoprotein-based susceptibility gene editing strategy.
- Hang Su
- Yuanchun Wang
- Nian Wang
ArticleOpen Access5 Jul 2023 Nature Communications
Inhibition of chitin deacetylases to attenuate plant fungal diseases

Phytopathogenic fungi secrete chitin deacetylase (CDA) to escape the host’s immunological defense during infection. Here, the authors reveal the common structural features of phytopathogenic fungal CDAs, and identify CDA inhibitors that are promising to control plant diseases.
- Lin Liu
- Yeqiang Xia
- Qing Yang
ArticleOpen Access29 Jun 2023 Nature Communications
Convergent evolution of plant pattern recognition receptors sensing cysteine-rich patterns from three microbial kingdoms

Plants have evolved pattern-recognition receptors to perceive pathogens. Here, the authors demonstrate that microbial small cysteine-rich proteins are eminent immune targets that led to convergent evolution of distinct immune receptors in plants.
- Yuankun Yang
- Christina E. Steidele
- Andrea A. Gust
ArticleOpen Access19 Jun 2023 Nature Communications
A plant RNA virus inhibits NPR1 sumoylation and subverts NPR1-mediated plant immunity

Salicylic acid (SA) signaling pathway restricts the compatible infection of potyviruses. Here, Liu et al. show that potyviral NIb interacts with NPR1, the SA receptor in plants, preventing its sumoylation by SUMO3 and subsequent phosphorylation at Ser11/Ser15. This way, NPR1-mediated immunity is suppressed to promote virus infection.
- Jiahui Liu
- Xiaoyun Wu
- Xiaofei Cheng
ArticleOpen Access16 Jun 2023 Nature Communications
MG1 interacts with a protease inhibitor and confers resistance to rice root-knot nematode

Rice root-knot nematode is a major threat to rice production. Here, the authors identify an R gene MG1 in rice that confers resistance against nematodes and encodes a protein that interacts with a protease inhibitor.
- Xiaomin Wang
- Rui Cheng
- Xiaoli Guo
ArticleOpen Access8 Jun 2023 Nature Communications
Different viral effectors suppress hormone-mediated antiviral immunity of rice coordinated by OsNPR1

Plant viruses have evolved various virulence strategies to overcome plant immunity. Here the authors show that distinct viral proteins repress JA-SA crosstalk by targeting rice NPR1 protein to facilitate viral infection
- Hehong Zhang
- Fengmin Wang
- Zongtao Sun
ArticleOpen Access25 May 2023 Nature Communications
Dynamic changes of the Prf/Pto tomato resistance complex following effector recognition

Both plant and animals utilize resistant proteins to recognise pathogens. In this work the authors illustrate how bacterial perception by a tomato resistant protein is communicated in order to protect plants against pathogens.
- Arsheed H. Sheikh
- Iosif Zacharia
- Vardis Ntoukakis
ArticleOpen Access4 May 2023 Nature Communications

Molecular basis of plant-pathogen interactions

Articles

Commensal lifestyle regulated by a negative feedback loop between Arabidopsis ROS and the bacterial T2SS

bacLIFE: a user-friendly computational workflow for genome analysis and prediction of lifestyle-associated genes in bacteria

A plant NLR receptor employs ABA central regulator PP2C-SnRK2 to activate antiviral immunity

Evolutionary trajectory of pattern recognition receptors in plants

A plant cell death-inducing protein from litchi interacts with Peronophythora litchii pectate lyase and enhances plant resistance

Magnaporthe oryzae effector MoSPAB1 directly activates rice Bsr-d1 expression to facilitate pathogenesis

Loss-of-function of an α-SNAP gene confers resistance to soybean cyst nematode

A papain-like cysteine protease-released small signal peptide confers wheat resistance to wheat yellow mosaic virus

Polyethyleneimine-coated MXene quantum dots improve cotton tolerance to Verticillium dahliae by maintaining ROS homeostasis

Single amino acid change alters specificity of the multi-allelic wheat stem rust resistance locus SR9

A transcriptional activator effector of Ustilago maydis regulates hyperplasia in maize during pathogen-induced tumor formation

Endocytosis-mediated entry of a caterpillar effector into plants is countered by Jasmonate

Cloning of the wheat leaf rust resistance gene Lr47 introgressed from Aegilops speltoides

Defense against phytopathogens relies on efficient antimicrobial protein secretion mediated by the microtubule-binding protein TGNap1

AlphaFold-Multimer predicts cross-kingdom interactions at the plant-pathogen interface

Ustilago maydis PR-1-like protein has evolved two distinct domains for dual virulence activities

Myxobacteria restrain Phytophthora invasion by scavenging thiamine in soybean rhizosphere via outer membrane vesicle-secreted thiaminase I

Divergent sequences of tetraspanins enable plants to specifically recognize microbe-derived extracellular vesicles

Autophagy promotes jasmonate-mediated defense against nematodes

XCP1 cleaves Pathogenesis-related protein 1 into CAPE9 for systemic immunity in Arabidopsis

BIK1 protein homeostasis is maintained by the interplay of different ubiquitin ligases in immune signaling

DeSUMOylation of a Verticillium dahliae enolase facilitates virulence by derepressing the expression of the effector VdSCP8

Differential CaKAN3-CaHSF8 associations underlie distinct immune and heat responses under high temperature and high humidity conditions

The OsSGS3-tasiRNA-OsARF3 module orchestrates abiotic-biotic stress response trade-off in rice

Fungal small RNAs ride in extracellular vesicles to enter plant cells through clathrin-mediated endocytosis

Sequencing trait-associated mutations to clone wheat rust-resistance gene YrNAM

A Phytophthora receptor-like kinase regulates oospore development and can activate pattern-triggered plant immunity

Generation of the transgene-free canker-resistant Citrus sinensis using Cas12a/crRNA ribonucleoprotein in the T0 generation

Inhibition of chitin deacetylases to attenuate plant fungal diseases

Convergent evolution of plant pattern recognition receptors sensing cysteine-rich patterns from three microbial kingdoms

A plant RNA virus inhibits NPR1 sumoylation and subverts NPR1-mediated plant immunity

MG1 interacts with a protease inhibitor and confers resistance to rice root-knot nematode

Different viral effectors suppress hormone-mediated antiviral immunity of rice coordinated by OsNPR1

Dynamic changes of the Prf/Pto tomato resistance complex following effector recognition

Search

Quick links