Phytophthora infestans RXLR-WY Effector AVR3a Associates with Dynamin-Related Protein 2 Required for Endocytosis of the Plant Pattern Recognition Receptor FLS2

PLoS One. 2015 Sep 8;10(9):e0137071. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0137071. eCollection 2015.

Abstract

Pathogens utilize effectors to suppress basal plant defense known as PTI (Pathogen-associated molecular pattern-triggered immunity). However, our knowledge of PTI suppression by filamentous plant pathogens, i.e. fungi and oomycetes, remains fragmentary. Previous work revealed that the co-receptor BAK1/SERK3 contributes to basal immunity against the potato pathogen Phytophthora infestans. Moreover BAK1/SERK3 is required for the cell death induced by P. infestans elicitin INF1, a protein with characteristics of PAMPs. The P. infestans host-translocated RXLR-WY effector AVR3a is known to supress INF1-mediated cell death by binding the plant E3 ligase CMPG1. In contrast, AVR3aKI-Y147del, a deletion mutant of the C-terminal tyrosine of AVR3a, fails to bind CMPG1 and does not suppress INF1-mediated cell death. Here, we studied the extent to which AVR3a and its variants perturb additional BAK1/SERK3-dependent PTI responses in N. benthamiana using the elicitor/receptor pair flg22/FLS2 as a model. We found that all tested variants of AVR3a suppress defense responses triggered by flg22 and reduce internalization of activated FLS2. Moreover, we discovered that AVR3a associates with the Dynamin-Related Protein 2 (DRP2), a plant GTPase implicated in receptor-mediated endocytosis. Interestingly, silencing of DRP2 impaired ligand-induced FLS2 internalization but did not affect internalization of the growth receptor BRI1. Our results suggest that AVR3a associates with a key cellular trafficking and membrane-remodeling complex involved in immune receptor-mediated endocytosis. We conclude that AVR3a is a multifunctional effector that can suppress BAK1/SERK3-mediated immunity through at least two different pathways.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Arabidopsis / genetics
  • Arabidopsis / immunology
  • Arabidopsis / microbiology
  • Arabidopsis Proteins / genetics*
  • Arabidopsis Proteins / immunology
  • Arabidopsis Proteins / metabolism*
  • Cell Death / genetics
  • Dynamins / genetics
  • Dynamins / immunology
  • Dynamins / metabolism*
  • Endocytosis / immunology
  • Metabolic Networks and Pathways
  • Nicotiana / genetics
  • Nicotiana / immunology
  • Nicotiana / microbiology
  • Pathogen-Associated Molecular Pattern Molecules / metabolism
  • Phytophthora infestans / genetics*
  • Phytophthora infestans / immunology
  • Phytophthora infestans / pathogenicity
  • Plant Immunity / genetics*
  • Plants, Genetically Modified
  • Protein Kinases / genetics*
  • Protein Kinases / immunology
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / genetics
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / immunology
  • Proteins / metabolism
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / metabolism
  • Virulence Factors / immunology
  • Virulence Factors / metabolism*

Substances

  • AVR3a protein, Phytophthora infestans
  • Arabidopsis Proteins
  • Pathogen-Associated Molecular Pattern Molecules
  • Proteins
  • Virulence Factors
  • elicitin, Phytophthora
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
  • Protein Kinases
  • BAK1 protein, Arabidopsis
  • FLS2 protein, Arabidopsis
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases
  • ADL6 protein, Arabidopsis
  • Dynamins