Two linked pairs of Arabidopsis TNL resistance genes independently confer recognition of bacterial effector AvrRps4

• Published in: Nature communications 2015-03, Vol.6 (1), p.6338-6338, Article 6338
• Main Authors: Saucet, Simon B., Ma, Yan, Sarris, Panagiotis F., Furzer, Oliver J., Sohn, Kee Hoon, Jones, Jonathan D.G.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 42/44; 42/70; 631/449/2169; 631/449/2169/2673; 631/449/2669; 64; 82; 82/1; 82/29; 82/80; Arabidopsis - genetics; Arabidopsis - immunology; Arabidopsis Proteins - genetics; Arabidopsis Proteins - metabolism; Bacterial Proteins - metabolism; Chromosome Mapping; DNA Primers - genetics; Evolution, Molecular; Humanities and Social Sciences; Immunoblotting; multidisciplinary; Phylogeny; Plant Immunity - genetics; Plant Leaves - genetics; Plant Leaves - metabolism; Plant Proteins - metabolism; Proteins - genetics; Proteins - metabolism; Pseudomonas syringae - genetics; Pseudomonas syringae - metabolism; Ralstonia solanacearum - genetics; Ralstonia solanacearum - metabolism; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Species Specificity; Transcription Factors - genetics; Transcription Factors - metabolism
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/ncomms7338

Plant immunity requires recognition of pathogen effectors by intracellular NB-LRR immune receptors encoded by Resistance ( R ) genes. Most R proteins recognize a specific effector, but some function in pairs that recognize multiple effectors. Arabidopsis thaliana TIR-NB-LRR proteins RRS1-R and RPS4 together recognize two bacterial effectors, AvrRps4 from Pseudomonas syringae and PopP2 from Ralstonia solanacearum . However, AvrRps4, but not PopP2, is recognized in rrs1/rps4 mutants. We reveal an R gene pair that resembles and is linked to RRS1 / RPS4 , designated as RRS1B / RPS4B , which confers recognition of AvrRps4 but not PopP2. Like RRS1/RPS4, RRS1B/RPS4B proteins associate and activate defence genes upon AvrRps4 recognition. Inappropriate combinations (RRS1/RPS4B or RRS1B/RPS4) are non-functional and this specificity is not TIR domain dependent. Distinct putative orthologues of both pairs are maintained in the genomes of Arabidopsis thaliana relatives and are likely derived from a common ancestor pair. Our results provide novel insights into paired R gene function and evolution. Plant immunity requires recognition of pathogen effector proteins by specific intracellular immune receptors. Here, Saucet et al . identify an additional pair of Arabidopsis receptors that act together to trigger defence responses upon recognition of the AvrRps4 effector from the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae .