Unusual Membrane-Associated Protein Kinases in Higher Plants

Plant genomes encode a variety of protein kinases, and while some are functional homologues of animal and fungal kinases, others have a novel structure. This review focuses on three groups of unusual membrane-associated plant protein kinases: receptor-like protein kinases (RLKs), calcium-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs), and histidine protein kinases. Animal RLKs have a putative extracellular domain, a single transmembrane domain, and a protein kinase domain. In plants, all of the RLKs identified thus far have serine/threonine signature sequences, rather than the tyrosine-specific signature sequences common to animals. Recent genetic experiments reveal that some of these plant kinases function in development and pathogen resistance. The CDPKs of plants and protozoans are composed of a single polypeptide with a protein kinase domain fused to a C-terminal calmodulin-like domain containing four calcium-binding EF hands. No functional plant homologues of protein kinase C or Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase have been identified, and no animal or fungal CDPK homologues have been identified. Recently, histidine kinases have been shown to participate in signaling pathways in plants and fungi. ETR1, an Arabidopsis histidine kinase homologue with three transmembrane domains, functions as a receptor for the plant hormone ethylene. G-protein-coupled receptors, which often serve as hormone receptors in animal systems, have not yet been identified in plants. Received: 18 August 1997/Revised: 23 December 1997     

类受体激酶FER调节植物与病原菌相互作用的分子机制

植物细胞依赖细胞质膜上的受体感知并传递环境信号,而受体通过与配体特异结合启动一系列下游信号转导途径,维持植物正常的生命活动及其对外界环境变化的适应。类受体激酶是其中一类重要受体,通常由胞外结合结构域、跨膜结构域和胞内激酶结构域3部分组成,是植物适应外界环境变化的重要调节枢纽。FER属于CrRLK1L类受体蛋白激酶家族,...     

Structure and function of the receptor-like protein kinases of higher plants

Cell surface receptors located in the plasma membrane have a prominent role in the initiation of cellular signalling. Recent evidence strongly suggests that plant cells carry cell surface receptors with intrinsic protein kinase activity. The plant receptor-like protein kinases (RLKs) are structurally related to the polypeptide growth factor receptors of animals which consist of a large extracytoplasmic domain, a single membrane spanning segment and a cytoplasmic domain of the protein kinase gene family. Most of the animal growth factor receptor protein kinases are tyrosine kinases; however, the plant RLKs all appear to be serine/threonine protein kinases. Based on structural similarities in their extracellular domains the RLKs fall into three categories: the S-domain class, related to the self-incompatibility locus glycoproteins of Brassica; the leucine-rich repeat class, containing a tandemly repeated motif that has been found in numerous proteins from a variety of eukaryotes; and a third class that has epidermal growth factor-like repeats. Distinct members of these putative receptors have been found in both monocytyledonous plants such as maize and in members of the dicotyledonous Brassicaceae. The diversity among plant RLKs, reflected in their structural and functional properties, has opened up a broad new area of investigation into cellular signalling in plants with far-reaching implications for the mechanisms by which plant cells perceive and respond to extracellular signals.     

Ethylene hormone receptor action in Arabidopsis.

Small gaseous molecules play important roles in biological signaling in both animal and plant physiology. The hydrocarbon gas ethylene has long been known to regulate diverse aspects of plant growth and development, including fruit ripening, leaf senescence and flower abscission. Recent progress has been made toward identifying components involved in ethylene signal transduction in the plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Ethylene is perceived by five receptors that have similarity to two-component signaling proteins. The hydrophobic amino-terminus of the receptors binds ethylene, and mutations in this domain both prevent ethylene binding and confer ethylene insensitivity to the plant; the carboxyl-terminal portion of the receptors has similarity to bacterial his tidine protein kinases. Genetic data suggest a model in which ethylene binding inhibits receptor signaling, yet precisely how these receptors function is unclear. Two of the receptors have been found to associate with a negative regulator of ethylene responses called CTR1, which appears to be a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) kinase kinase.     

植物类受体蛋白激酶的研究进展

植物类受体蛋白激酶(receptor-like protein kinase,RLKs)通过胞外结构域识别病原信号分子,发生磷酸化、去磷酸化反应而开启或关闭下游靶蛋白,调节植物固有免疫反应,诱导抗病防御反应.目前对植物类受体蛋白激酶的功能、信号传导和配体识别等方面的研究已成为该领域的重点.本文对近年来国内外有关植物类受体蛋白激酶的结构、功能及其在植物抗病防御反应中的作用研究进行综述,为今后进一步深入研究植物类受体蛋白激酶的生理生化功能及应用提供参考.     

Moonlighting kinases with guanylate cyclase activity can tune regulatory signal networks

Guanylate cyclase (GC) catalyzes the formation of cGMP and it is only recently that such enzymes have been characterized in plants. One family of plant GCs contains the GC catalytic center encapsulated within the intracellular kinase domain of leucine rich repeat receptor like kinases such as the phytosulfokine and brassinosteroid receptors. In vitro studies show that both the kinase and GC domain have catalytic activity indicating that these kinase-GCs are examples of moonlighting proteins with dual catalytic function. The natural ligands for both receptors increase intracellular cGMP levels in isolated mesophyll protoplast assays suggesting that the GC activity is functionally relevant. cGMP production may have an autoregulatory role on receptor kinase activity and/or contribute to downstream cell expansion responses. We postulate that the receptors are members of a novel class of receptor kinases that contain functional moonlighting GC domains essential for complex signaling roles.     

Brassinosteroids signal through two receptor-like kinases

Both animals and plants use steroids to regulate their growth and development, but their mechanisms for steroid perception are different. Animal steroids are mainly recognized by intracellular steroid receptors, whereas plant steroids are perceived by cell-surface receptors that contain a transmembrane receptor serine/threonine kinase. Recent studies suggest that heterodimerization between two receptor kinases might be a key step in steroid perception and signaling in plants.     

The PP2C-SnRK2 complex: The central regulator of an abscisic acid signaling pathway

The phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA), an important bioactive compound in plants, is implicated in several essential processes such as development and the abiotic stress response. Many components have been reported to have roles in these processes. Although 2C-type protein phosphatases (PP2C) and SNF1-related protein kinases2 (SnRK2) family are known to be important signal mediators, the molecular mechanisms by which these components regulate the ABA signaling pathway have not been elucidated. Recent identification of soluble ABA receptors, PYR/PYL/RCAR, has provided a major breakthrough in understanding the signaling mechanisms of ABA and revealed the importance of PP2Cs. In addition, the physical, biochemical and physiological connections between PP2C and SnRK2 have been clearly demonstrated. Taken together, the molecular basis of the major ABA signaling pathway has been established, from perception to gene expression. In this addendum, we discuss this emerging ABA signaling pathway, which has a conventional protein phosphorylation/dephosphorylation regulatory circuit and consider its physiological and functional relevance.Key words: ABA receptor, abscisic acid, PP2C, signal transduction, SnRK2, plant hormone, phosphoarylation     

Pattern recognition receptors: from the cell surface to intracellular dynamics

Detection of potentially infectious microorganisms is essential for plant immunity. Microbial communities growing on plant surfaces are constantly monitored according to their conserved microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs). In recent years, several pattern-recognition receptors, including receptor-like kinases and receptor-like proteins, and their contribution to disease resistance have been described. MAMP signaling must be carefully controlled and seems to involve receptor endocytosis. As a further surveillance layer, plants are able to specifically recognize microbial effector molecules via nucleotide-binding site leucine-rich repeat receptors (NB-LRR). A number of recent studies show that NB-LRR translocate to the nucleus in order to exert their activity. In this review, current knowledge regarding the recognition of MAMPs by surface receptors, receptor activation, signaling, and subcellular redistribution are discussed.     

植物GSKs:新发现的具有多种重要功能的基因家族

糖原合成酶激酶 (GSK 3)是一种高度保守的丝氨酸 苏氨酸蛋白激酶 ,在动物中参与诸如糖原合成、胰岛素调节、多种蛋白的转录激活和发育调控等许多生命活动的信号转导。在植物中也分离到了GSK 3 Like基因 ,在拟南芥中的GSKs家族分为四种。GSKs家族在植物中也扮演着重要的角色 ,现有的证据表明 ,植物GSKs可能参与植物的渗透胁迫应答、伤害应答以及油菜素内酯信号转导 ,调节花的发育等等一系列生命活动进程。讨论植物GSKs的发现及其功能研究的最新进展。     

Plant immune system: Basal immunity

Plants have an efficient system of innate immunity that is based on the effective detection of potentially harmful microorganisms and rapid induction of defense responses. The first level of plant immunity is basal immunity, which is induced by the conserved molecular structures of microbes, such as bacterial flagellins or fungal chitin, or molecules that result from the interaction of plants with pathogens, for example oligosaccharides and peptides (“danger signals”). Plants recognize these inducers through receptors localized to the plasma membrane, represented mainly by receptor-like protein kinases or receptor-like proteins. Activation of the receptor by a ligand triggers a complex network of signaling events, which eventually cause an array of plant defense responses to prevent further spread of the pathogen.     

植物ABA受体及其介导的信号转导通路

ABA是调控植物体生长发育和响应外界应激的重要植物激素之一。近年来, ABA受体的筛选和鉴定取得了突破性进展, 为植物中ABA信号转导通路的阐明奠定了重要基础。该文主要综述了ABA-binding protein/H subunit of Mgchelatase (ABAR/CHLH)、G protein-coupled receptor 2 (GCR2)、GPCR-type G protein 1/2 (GTG1/2)和pyrabactin resistant/PYR-like/regulatory component of ABA (PYR/PYL/RCAR)被报道为ABA受体的研究历程, 重点介绍了以ABAR/CHLH PYR/PYL/RCAR为受体的ABA信号转导通路模型的构建, 旨在为ABA受体及其信号转导通路的相关研究提供参考。     

Genome-Wide Analysis and Experimentation of Plant Serine/ Threonine/Tyrosine-Specific Protein Kinases

Protein tyrosine phosphorylation plays an important role in cell growth, development and oncogenesis. No classical protein tyrosine kinase has hitherto been cloned from plants. Does protein tyrosine kinase exist in plants? To address this, we have performed a genomic survey of protein tyrosine kinase motifs in plants using the delineated tyrosine phosphorylation motifs from the animal system. The Arabidopsis thaliana genome encodes 57 different protein kinases that have tyrosine kinase motifs. Animal non-receptor tyrosine kinases, SRC, ABL, LYN, FES, SEK, KIN and RAS have structural relationship with putative plant tyrosine kinases. In an extended analysis, animal receptor and non-receptor kinases, Raf and Ras kinases, mixed lineage kinases and plant serine/threonine/tyrosine (STY) protein kinases, form a well-supported group sharing a common origin within the superfamily of STY kinases. We report that plants lack bona fide tyrosine kinases, which raise an intriguing possibility that tyrosine phosphorylation is carried out by dual-specificity STY protein kinases in plants. The distribution pattern of STY protein kinase families on Arabidopsis chromosomes indicates that this gene family is partly a consequence of duplication and reshuffling of the Arabidopsis genome and of the generation of tandem repeats. Genome-wide analysis is supported by the functional expression and characterization of At2g24360 and phosphoproteomics of Arabidopsis. Evidence for tyrosine phosphorylated proteins is provided by alkaline hydrolysis, anti-phosphotyrosine immunoblotting, phosphoamino acid analysis and peptide mass fingerprinting. These results report the first comprehensive survey of genome-wide and tyrosine phosphoproteome analysis of plant STY protein kinases.     

The crossroads of receptor-mediated signaling and endocytosis in plants

Plants deploy numerous plasma membrane receptors to sense and rapidly react to environmental changes. Correct localization and adequate protein levels of the cell-surface receptors are critical for signaling activation and modulation of plant development and defense against pathogens. After ligand binding, receptors are internalized for degradation and signaling attenuation. However, one emerging notion is that the ligand-induced endocytosis of receptor complexes is important for the signal duration, ampli tude, and specificity. Recently, mutants of major endocytosis players, including clathrin and dynamin have been shown to display defects in activation of a subset of signal transduction pathways, implying that signaling in plants might not be solely restricted to the plasma membrane. Here, we summarize the up-to-date knowledge of receptor complex endocytosis and its effect on the signaling outcome, in the context of plant development and immunity.     

Signaling through MAP kinase networks in plants

Protein phosphorylation is the most important mechanism for controlling many fundamental cellular processes in all living organisms including plants. A specific class of serine/threonine protein kinases, the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAP kinases) play a central role in the transduction of various extra- and intracellular signals and are conserved throughout eukaryotes. These generally function via a cascade of networks, where MAP kinase (MAPK) is phosphorylated and activated by MAPK kinase (MAPKK), which itself is activated by MAPKK kinase (MAPKKK). Signaling through MAP kinase cascade can lead to cellular responses including cell division, differentiation as well as response to various stresses. In plants, MAP kinases are represented by multigene families and are organized into a complex network for efficient transmission of specific stimuli. Putative plant MAP kinase cascades have been postulated based on experimental analysis of in vitro interactions between specific MAP kinase components. These cascades have been tested in planta following expression of epitope-tagged kinases in protoplasts. It is known that signaling for cell division and stress responses in plants are mediated through MAP kinases and even auxin, ABA and possibly ethylene and cytokinin also utilize a MAP kinase pathway. Most of the biotic (pathogens and pathogen-derived elicitors) including wounding and abiotic stresses (salinity, cold, drought, and oxidative) can induce defense responses in plants through MAP kinase pathways. In this article we have covered the historical background, biochemical assay, activation/inactivation, and targets of MAP kinases with emphasis on plant MAP kinases and the responses regulated by them. The cross-talk between plant MAP kinases is also discussed to bring out the complexity within this three-component module.