Recent studies in Arabidopsis have revealed that some vq motif-containing proteins physically interact with WRKY transcription factors; however, their specific biological functions are still poorly understood. In this...Recent studies in Arabidopsis have revealed that some vq motif-containing proteins physically interact with WRKY transcription factors; however, their specific biological functions are still poorly understood. In this study, we confirmed the interaction between VQ1o and WRKY8, and show that VQ1o and WRKY8 formed a complex in the plant cell nucleus. Yeast two-hybrid analysis showed that the middle region of WRKY8 and the vq motif of vqlo are critical for their interaction, and that this interaction promotes the DNA-binding activity of WRKY8. Further investigation revealed that the VqlO protein was exclusively localized in the nucleus, and VQ1o was predominantly expressed in siliques, vQ1o expression was strongly responsive to the necrotrophic fungal pathogen, Botrytis cinerea and defense-relatedhormones. Phenotypic analysis showed that disruption of VQlo increased mutant plants susceptibility to the fungal pathogen B. cinerea, whereas constitutive-expres- sion of VQlo enhanced resistance to B. cinerea. Consis- tent with these findings, expression of the defenserelated PLANT DEFENSIN1.2 （PDFt2） gene was decreased in vqlo mutant plants, after B. cinerea infection, but increased in vQ1o-overexpressing transgenic plants. Taken together, our findings provide evidence that VQlo physically interacts with WRKY8 and positively regulates plant basal resistance against the necrotrophic fungal pathogen B. cinerea.展开更多
Plants perceive pathogen-associated molecular patterns(PAMPs)using plasma-membrane-localized pattern recognition receptors(PRRs)to activate broad-spectrum pattern-triggered immunity.However,the regulatory mechanisms t...Plants perceive pathogen-associated molecular patterns(PAMPs)using plasma-membrane-localized pattern recognition receptors(PRRs)to activate broad-spectrum pattern-triggered immunity.However,the regulatory mechanisms that ensure robust broad-spectrum plant immunity remain largely unknown.Here,we reveal that the transcription factor WRKY8 has a dual role in the transcriptional regulation of PRR genes:repressing expression of the nlp20/nlp24 receptor gene RLP23 while promoting that of the chitin receptor gene CERK1.SsNLP1 and SsNLP2,two nlp24-type PAMPs from the destructive fungal pathogen Sclerotinia sclerotiorum,activate two calcium-elicited kinases,CPK4 and CPK11,which phosphorylate WRKY8 and thus release its inhibition on RLP23 to promote accumulation of RLP23 transcripts.Meanwhile,SsNLPs activate the RLCK-type kinase PBL19,which phosphorylates WRKY8 and thus enhances accumulation of CERK1 transcripts.Intriguingly,RLP23 is repressed at later stage by PBL19-mediated phosphorylation of WRKY8,thus avoiding excessive immunity and enabling normal growth.Our findings unveil a plant strategy of“killing two birds with one stone”to elicit robust broad-spectrum immunity.This strategy is based on PAMP-triggered fine-tuning of a dual-role transcription factor to simultaneously amplify two PRRs that recognize PAMPs conserved across a wide range of pathogens.Moreover,our results reveal a novel plant strategy for balancing the trade-off between growth and immunity by fine-tuning the expression of multiple PRR genes.展开更多
Transcription factors(TFs)play key roles in the regulatory network of leaf senescence.However,many nodes in this network remain unclear.To elucidate the mechanism of leaf senescence mediated by a rice TF,WRKY10,the ex...Transcription factors(TFs)play key roles in the regulatory network of leaf senescence.However,many nodes in this network remain unclear.To elucidate the mechanism of leaf senescence mediated by a rice TF,WRKY10,the expression of multiple senescence-related genes and physiological phenotypes were monitored in WRKY10-and VQ MOTIF-CONTAINING PROTEIN8(VQ8)-overexpressing plants and the wrky10 and vq8 mutants.Our results showed that WRKY10 positively regulates abscisic acid(ABA)-and dark-induced senescence(DIS)by directly regulating the expression of multiple senescence-related genes.The VQ8 protein,a repressor of WRKY10,negatively regulates WRKY10-mediated DIS.The WRKY10-VQ8 module fine-tunes the progression of DIS.ABA,methyl jasmonate,and H_(2)O_(2) accelerate WRKY10-mediated DIS,whereas ammonium nitrate and dithiothreitol delay WRKY10-mediated DIS.Further analysis revealed that WRKY10 and VQ8 interact with ABA RESPONSIVE ELEMENT BINDING FACTOR1(ABF1)or ABF2.VQ8 represses the transcriptional activity of ABF1 and ABF2.Overexpression of ABF1 or ABF2 accelerates ABA-and dark-induced senescence and H_(2)O_(2) accumulation in N.benthamiana leaves,and WRKY10 and VQ8 can inhibit either ABF1-or ABF2-induced cell necrosis.Taken together,WRKY10 integrates multiple senescence signals to establish an orderly progression of leaf senescence.The VQ8 protein acts as a brake on WRKY10-induced senescence and ABF1/2-induced cell death,preventing uncontrolled cell death.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(31671274,91417307)the Innovative Team of Yunnan Province(2014HC017)
文摘Recent studies in Arabidopsis have revealed that some vq motif-containing proteins physically interact with WRKY transcription factors; however, their specific biological functions are still poorly understood. In this study, we confirmed the interaction between VQ1o and WRKY8, and show that VQ1o and WRKY8 formed a complex in the plant cell nucleus. Yeast two-hybrid analysis showed that the middle region of WRKY8 and the vq motif of vqlo are critical for their interaction, and that this interaction promotes the DNA-binding activity of WRKY8. Further investigation revealed that the VqlO protein was exclusively localized in the nucleus, and VQ1o was predominantly expressed in siliques, vQ1o expression was strongly responsive to the necrotrophic fungal pathogen, Botrytis cinerea and defense-relatedhormones. Phenotypic analysis showed that disruption of VQlo increased mutant plants susceptibility to the fungal pathogen B. cinerea, whereas constitutive-expres- sion of VQlo enhanced resistance to B. cinerea. Consis- tent with these findings, expression of the defenserelated PLANT DEFENSIN1.2 （PDFt2） gene was decreased in vqlo mutant plants, after B. cinerea infection, but increased in vQ1o-overexpressing transgenic plants. Taken together, our findings provide evidence that VQlo physically interacts with WRKY8 and positively regulates plant basal resistance against the necrotrophic fungal pathogen B. cinerea.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(no.31871947)Zhejiang Science and Technology Major Program on Agricultural New Variety Breeding(no.2021C02064)+1 种基金Hainan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China(no.324CXTD430)Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China(no.LZ18C140002).
文摘Plants perceive pathogen-associated molecular patterns(PAMPs)using plasma-membrane-localized pattern recognition receptors(PRRs)to activate broad-spectrum pattern-triggered immunity.However,the regulatory mechanisms that ensure robust broad-spectrum plant immunity remain largely unknown.Here,we reveal that the transcription factor WRKY8 has a dual role in the transcriptional regulation of PRR genes:repressing expression of the nlp20/nlp24 receptor gene RLP23 while promoting that of the chitin receptor gene CERK1.SsNLP1 and SsNLP2,two nlp24-type PAMPs from the destructive fungal pathogen Sclerotinia sclerotiorum,activate two calcium-elicited kinases,CPK4 and CPK11,which phosphorylate WRKY8 and thus release its inhibition on RLP23 to promote accumulation of RLP23 transcripts.Meanwhile,SsNLPs activate the RLCK-type kinase PBL19,which phosphorylates WRKY8 and thus enhances accumulation of CERK1 transcripts.Intriguingly,RLP23 is repressed at later stage by PBL19-mediated phosphorylation of WRKY8,thus avoiding excessive immunity and enabling normal growth.Our findings unveil a plant strategy of“killing two birds with one stone”to elicit robust broad-spectrum immunity.This strategy is based on PAMP-triggered fine-tuning of a dual-role transcription factor to simultaneously amplify two PRRs that recognize PAMPs conserved across a wide range of pathogens.Moreover,our results reveal a novel plant strategy for balancing the trade-off between growth and immunity by fine-tuning the expression of multiple PRR genes.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31371557 and 31571574)Wenzhou Basic Scientific Research Project (N20240009)。
文摘Transcription factors(TFs)play key roles in the regulatory network of leaf senescence.However,many nodes in this network remain unclear.To elucidate the mechanism of leaf senescence mediated by a rice TF,WRKY10,the expression of multiple senescence-related genes and physiological phenotypes were monitored in WRKY10-and VQ MOTIF-CONTAINING PROTEIN8(VQ8)-overexpressing plants and the wrky10 and vq8 mutants.Our results showed that WRKY10 positively regulates abscisic acid(ABA)-and dark-induced senescence(DIS)by directly regulating the expression of multiple senescence-related genes.The VQ8 protein,a repressor of WRKY10,negatively regulates WRKY10-mediated DIS.The WRKY10-VQ8 module fine-tunes the progression of DIS.ABA,methyl jasmonate,and H_(2)O_(2) accelerate WRKY10-mediated DIS,whereas ammonium nitrate and dithiothreitol delay WRKY10-mediated DIS.Further analysis revealed that WRKY10 and VQ8 interact with ABA RESPONSIVE ELEMENT BINDING FACTOR1(ABF1)or ABF2.VQ8 represses the transcriptional activity of ABF1 and ABF2.Overexpression of ABF1 or ABF2 accelerates ABA-and dark-induced senescence and H_(2)O_(2) accumulation in N.benthamiana leaves,and WRKY10 and VQ8 can inhibit either ABF1-or ABF2-induced cell necrosis.Taken together,WRKY10 integrates multiple senescence signals to establish an orderly progression of leaf senescence.The VQ8 protein acts as a brake on WRKY10-induced senescence and ABF1/2-induced cell death,preventing uncontrolled cell death.
