A Phytophthora capsici RXLR Effector Targets and Inhibits a Plant,PPlase to Suppress Endoplasmic Reticulum-Mediated Immunity

Phytophthora pathogens secrete a large arsenal of effectors that manipulate host processes to create an environment conducive to pathogen colonization. However, the underlying mechanisms by which Phytophthora effectors manipulate host plant cells still remain largely unclear. In this study, we report that PcAvr3a12, a Phytophthera capsici RXLR effector and a member of the Avr3a effector family, suppresses plant immunity by targeting and inhibiting host plant peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase （PPlase）. Overexpression of PcAvr3a 12 in Arabidopsis thaliana enhanced plant susceptibility to P. capsici. FKBP15-2, an endoplasmic reticulum （ER）-Iocalized protein, was identified as a host target of PcAvr3a12 during early P. capsici infection. Analyses of A. thaliana T-DNA insertion mutant （fkbp15-2）, RNAi, and overexpression lines consistently showed that FKBP15-2 positively regulates plant immunity in response to Phytophthora infection. FKBP15-2 possesses PPlase activity essential for its contribution to immunity but is directly suppressed by PcAvr3a12. Interestingly, we found that FKBP15-2 is involved in ER stress sensing and is required for ER stress-mediated plant immunity. Taken together, these results suggest that P. capsici deploys an RXLR effector, PcAvr3a12, to facilitate infection by targeting and suppressing a novel ER-Iocalized PPlase, FKBP15-2, which is required for ER stress-mediated plant immunity.

The novel peptide Nb PPI1 identified from Nicotiana benthamiana triggers immune responses and enhances resistance against Phytophthora pathogens

In plants, recognition of small secreted peptides, such as damage/danger-associated molecular patterns(DAMPs), regulates diverse processes,includingstressandimmune responses. Here, we identified an SGPS(Ser-Gly-Pro-Ser) motif-containing peptide, Nicotiana tabacum NtPROPPI, and its two homologs in Nicotiana benthamiana, NbPROPPI1 and NbPROPPI2. Phytophthora parasitica infection and salicylic acid(SA) treatment induced NbPROPPI1/2 expression. Moreover, SignalP predicted that the 89-amino acid NtPROPPI includes a 24-amino acid N-terminal signal peptide and NbPROPPI1/2-GFP fusion proteins were mainly localized to the periplasm. Transient expression of NbPROPPI1/2 inhibited P.parasiticacolonization,andNbPROPPI1/2 knockdown rendered plants more susceptible to P. parasitica. An eight-amino-acid segment in the NbPROPPI1 C-terminus was essential for its immune function and a synthetic 20-residue peptide, NbPPI1, derived from the C-terminus of NbPROPPI1 provoked significant immune responses in N. benthamiana. These responses led to enhanced accumulation of reactive oxygen species, activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases, and up-regulation of the defense genes Flg22-induced receptor-like kinase(FRK) and WRKY DNA-binding protein 33(WRKY33). The NbPPI1-induced defense responses require Brassinosteroid insensitive1-associated receptor kinase 1(BAK1). These results suggest that NbPPI1 functions as a DAMP in N. benthamiana;this novel DAMP provides a potentially useful target for improving plant resistance to Pytophthora pathogens.