Biology subjects

Białas, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Białas, A..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2024

The new role of carbonic anhydrases and bicarbonate in acclimatization and hypoxia stress responses in Arabidopsis thaliana

Plant growth and stress responses largely depend on the chloroplast retrograde signaling. Stoichiometry of carbon dioxide assimilation and transpiration, efficiency of photosynthesis, and absorbed energy fate in photosystems between photochemistry, fluorescence and heat channels impact on the chloroplast retrograde signaling. Recent studies revealed that 22 kDa photosystem II protein (PsbS) and plant {beta} carbonic anhydrases ({beta}CAs), except their obvious functions, are also involved in regulation of plant stress responses. Obtained results suggest that simultaneous overexpression of {beta}CA1 and/or {beta}CA2 with PsbS genes leads to improved photoprotection, acclimation to variable light conditions, and water use efficiency. However, this was achieved on the costs of lower biomass gain in double and triple (oePsbSoe{beta}CA1 and oePsbSoe{beta}CA1{beta}CA2, respectively) transgenic lines in comparison to Col-0, and npq4-1 mutant. After bicarbonate fertilization we observed significant increase in biomass production in triple transgenic lines compared to oePsbS and npq4-1 plants, but not to Col-0. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that bicarbonate treatment of double and triple transgenic lines specifically induced expression of genes and transcription factors related to hypoxia, freezing, drought, high light, and pathogen attack stress responses, contrary to other genotypes. Interestingly, expression of two of these transcription factors, DREB - CBF2 subfamily (A-1 of ERF/AP2), and BT2 were reduced in oePsbS transgenic line. Our results suggest a novel regulatory role of {beta}CAs and bicarbonate in the regulation of stress responses and plant productivity.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2020

The blast pathogen effector AVR-Pik binds and stabilizes rice heavy metal-associated (HMA) proteins to co-opt their function in immunity

Intracellular nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat-containing (NLR) receptors play crucial roles in immunity across multiple domains of life. In plants, a subset of NLRs contain noncanonical integrated domains that are thought to have evolved from host targets of pathogen effectors to serve as pathogen baits. However, the functions of host proteins with similarity to NLR integrated domains and the extent to which they are targeted by pathogen effectors remain largely unknown. Here, we show that the blast fungus effector AVR-Pik binds a subset of related rice proteins containing a heavy metal-associated (HMA) domain, one of the domains that has repeatedly integrated into plant NLR immune receptors. We find that AVR-Pik binding stabilizes the rice small HMA (sHMA) proteins OsHIPP19 and OsHIPP20. Knockout of OsHIPP20 causes enhanced disease resistance towards the blast pathogen, indicating that OsHIPP20 is a susceptibility gene (S-gene). We propose that AVR-Pik has evolved to bind HMA domain proteins and co-opt their function to suppress immunity. Yet this binding carries a trade-off, it triggers immunity in plants carrying NLR receptors with integrated HMA domains. Significance StatementRice blast disease, caused by the fungus Magnaporthe oryzae, is one of the most devastating diseases of rice. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms of blast fungus infection and resistance of rice against the disease is important for global food security. In this study, we show that the M. oryzae effector protein AVR-PikD binds rice sHMA proteins and stabilizes them, presumably to enhance pathogen infection. We show that loss-of-function mutants in one rice sHMA, OsHIPP20, reduced the level of susceptibility against a compatible isolate of M. oryzae, suggesting that M. oryzae requires host sHMA to facilitate invasion. Remarkably, OsHIPP20 knockout rice line showed no growth defect, suggesting editing sHMA genes may present a novel source of resistance against blast disease.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2017

An unconventional NOI/RIN4 domain of a rice NLR protein binds host EXO70 protein to confer fungal immunity

As much as 10% of plant immune receptors from the nucleotide-binding domain leucine-rich repeat (NLR) family carry integrated domains (IDs) that can directly bind pathogen effectors. However, it remains unclear whether direct binding to effectors is a universal feature of ID-containing NLRs given that only a few NLR-IDs have been functionally characterized. Here we show that the rice (Oryza sativa) sensor NLR-ID Pii2 confers resistance to strains of the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae that carry the effector AVR-Pii without directly binding this protein. First, we show that AVR-Pii binds the exocyst subunit OsExo70F2 in rice (Oryza sativa) to dissociate preformed complexes of OsExo70F2 with host RPM1 INTERACTING PROTEIN4 (RIN4) at the conserved NOI motif, facilitating a possible virulence function. Second, we show that in its resting state, Pii2 binds OsExo70F2 and OsExo70F3, essential components of Pii-mediated resistance, through its integrated NOI domain. Remarkably, AVR-Pii binding to OsExo70F2/F3 leads to dissociation of the Pii2-OsExo70F2 and Pii2-OsExo70F3 complexes, destabilization of Pii2, and activation of immunity. These findings support a novel conceptual model in which an NLR-ID monitors alterations of tethered host proteins targeted by pathogen effectors, providing insight into pathogen recognition mechanisms. Significance statementPlant diseases diminish crop yields by over 20% each year, and deploying resistant crops is the most effective way to combat them. Nucleotide-binding domain leucine-rich repeat (NLR)-type receptors are the major player in plant resistance against pathogens, with a subset of NLRs containing unconventional domains called integrated domains (ID) derived from host proteins. Previous studies suggest that pathogen avirulence (AVR) effectors directly bind or modify NLR-IDs before they are recognized by the host. Here, we reveal that the rice NLR-ID receptor Pii2 indirectly recognizes AVR-Pii when the effector dissociates Pii2 from the host Exo70 proteins tethered to Pii2. We propose a new model of how NLRs can recognize pathogens, expanding our understanding of plant immunity.

plant biology↗