Biology subjects

Rosas-Diaz, T.

Publications and source records attributed to Rosas-Diaz, T..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2018

Geminivirus Replication Protein impairs SUMO conjugation of PCNA at two acceptor sites

Geminiviruses are DNA viruses that replicate in nuclei of infected plant cells using the plant DNA replication machinery, including PCNA (Proliferating cellular nuclear antigen), a cofactor that orchestrates genome duplication and maintenance by recruiting crucial players to replication forks. These viruses encode a multifunctional protein, Rep, which is essential for viral replication, induces the accumulation of the host replication machinery and interacts with several host proteins, including PCNA and the SUMO E2 conjugation enzyme (SCE1). Post-translational modification of PCNA by ubiquitin or SUMO plays an essential role in the switching of PCNA between interacting partners during DNA metabolism processes (e.g. replication, recombination, repair, etc.). In yeast, PCNA sumoylation has been associated to DNA repair involving homologous recombination (HR). Previously, we reported that ectopic Rep expression results in very specific changes in the sumoylation pattern of plant cells. In this work, we show, using a reconstituted sumoylation system in Escherichia coli, that tomato PCNA is sumoylated at two residues, K254 and K164, and that co-expression of the geminivirus protein Rep suppresses sumoylation at these lysines. Finally, we confirm that PCNA is sumoylated in planta and that Rep also interferes with PCNA sumoylation in plant cells.\n\nImportanceSUMO adducts have a key role in regulating the activity of animal and yeast PCNA on DNA repair and replication. Our work demonstrates for the first time that sumoylation of plant PCNA occurs in plant cells and that a plant virus interferes with this modification. This work marks the importance of sumoylation in allowing viral infection and replication in plants. Moreover, it constitutes a prime example of viral proteins interfering with post-translational modifications of selected host factors to create a proper environment for infection.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2018

The IMMUNE-ASSOCIATED NUCLEOTIDE-BINDING 9 protein is a regulator of basal immunity in Arabidopsis thaliana

A robust regulation of plant immune responses requires multitude of positive and negative regulators that act in concert. The immune-associated nucleotide-binding (IAN) gene family members are associated with immunity in different organisms, although no characterization of their function has been carried out to date in plants. In this work, we analyzed the expression patterns of IAN genes and found that IAN9 is repressed upon pathogen infection or treatment with immune elicitors. IAN9 encodes a plasma membrane-localized protein that genetically behaves as a negative regulator of immunity. A novel ian9 mutant generated by CRISPR/Cas9 shows increased resistance to Pseudomonas syringae, while transgenic plants overexpressing IAN9 show a slight increase in susceptibility. In vivo immunoprecipitation of IAN9-GFP followed by mass spectrometry analysis revealed that IAN9 associates with a previously uncharacterized C3HC4-type RING finger domain-containing protein that we named IAP1, for IAN9-associated protein 1, which also acts as a negative regulator of basal immunity. Interestingly, neither ian9 or iap1 mutant plants show any obvious developmental phenotype, suggesting that they display enhanced inducible immunity rather than constitutive immune responses. Since both IAN9 and IAP1 have orthologs in important crop species, they could be suitable targets to generate plants more resistant to diseases caused by bacterial pathogens without yield penalty.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2017

A plant receptor-like kinase promotes cell-to-cell spread of RNAi and is targeted by a virus

RNA interference (RNAi) in plants can move from cell to cell, allowing for systemic spread of an anti-viral immune response. How this cell-to-cell spread of silencing is regulated is currently unknown. Here, we describe that the C4 protein from Tomato yellow leaf curl virus has the ability to inhibit the intercellular spread of RNAi. Using this viral protein as a probe, we have identified the receptor-like kinase (RLK) BARELY ANY MERISTEM 1 (BAM1) as a positive regulator of the cell-to-cell movement of RNAi, and determined that BAM1 and its closest homologue, BAM2, play a redundant role in this process. C4 interacts with the intracellular domain of BAM1 and BAM2 at the plasma membrane and plasmodesmata, the cytoplasmic connections between plant cells, interfering with the function of these RLKs in the cell-to-cell spread of RNAi. Our results identify BAM1 as an element required for the cell-to-cell spread of RNAi and highlight that signalling components have been co-opted to play multiple functions in plants.

plant biology↗