Nucleotide sequence and evolution of the five-plasmid complement of the phytopathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola ES4326

Plasmids are transmissible, extrachromosomal genetic elements that are often responsible for environmental or host-specific adaptations. In order to identify the forces driving the evolution of these important molecules, we determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the five-plasmid complement of the radish and Arabidopsis pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola ES4326 and conducted an intraspecific comparative genomic analysis. To date, this is the most complex fully sequenced plasmid complement of any gram-negative bacterium. The plasmid complement comprises two pPT23A-like replicons, pPMA4326A (46,697 bp) and pPMA4326B (40,110 bp); a pPS10-like replicon, pPMA4326C (8,244 bp); and two atypical, replicase-deficient replicons, pPMA4326D (4,833 bp) and pPMA4326E (4,217 bp). A complete type IV secretion system is found on pPMA4326A, while the type III secreted effector hopPmaA is present on pPMA4326B. The region around hopPmaA includes a shorter hopPmaA homolog, insertion sequence (IS) elements, and a three-element cassette composed of a resolvase, an integrase, and an exeA gene that is also present in several human pathogens. We have also identified a novel genetic element (E622) that is present on all but the smallest plasmid (pPMA4326E) that has features of an IS element but lacks an identifiable transposase. This element is associated with virulence-related genes found in a wide range of P. syringae strains. Comparative genomic analyses of these and other P. syringae plasmids suggest a role for recombination and integrative elements in driving plasmid evolution.     

Virulence of the phytopathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola is rpoN dependent

We cloned the rpoN (ntrA and glnF) gene encoding sigma(54) from the phytopathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola strain ES4326. The P. syringae ES4326 rpoN gene complemented Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, and Klebsiella aerogenes rpoN mutants for a variety of rpoN mutant phenotypes, including the inability to utilize nitrate as sole nitrogen source. DNA sequence analysis of the P. syringae ES4326 rpoN gene revealed that the deduced amino acid sequence was most similar (86% identity; 95% similarity) to the sigma(54) protein encoded by the Pseudomonas putida rpoN gene. A marker exchange protocol was used to construct an ES4326 rpoN insertional mutation, rpoN::Km(r). In contrast to wild-type ES4326, ES4326 rpoN::Km(r) was nonmotile and could not utilize nitrate, urea, C(4)-dicarboxylic acids, several amino acids, or concentrations of ammonia below 2 mM as nitrogen sources. rpoN was essential for production of the phytotoxin coronatine and for expression of the structural genes encoding coronamic acid. In addition, ES4326 rpoN::Km(r) did not multiply or elicit disease symptoms when infiltrated into Arabidopsis thaliana leaves, did not elicit the accumulation of several Arabidopsis defense-related mRNAs, and did not elicit a hypersensitive response (HR) when infiltrated into tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) leaves. Furthermore, whereas P. syringae ES4326 carrying the avirulence gene avrRpt2 elicited an HR when infiltrated into Arabidopsis ecotype Columbia leaves, ES4326 rpoN::Km(r) carrying avrRpt2 elicited no response. Constitutive expression of ES4326 hrpL in ES4326 rpoN::Km(r) partially restored defense-related mRNA accumulation, showing a direct role for the hrp cluster in host defense gene induction in a compatible host-pathogen interaction. However, constitutive expression of hrpL in ES4326 rpoN::Km(r) did not restore coronatine production, showing that coronatine biosynthesis requires factors other than hrpL.     

Relatedness of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato, Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola and Pseudomonas syringae pv. antirrhini

The relationships among strains of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato, Ps. syr. antirrhini, Ps. syr. maculicola, Ps. syr. apii and a strain isolated from squash were examined by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) patterns, nutritional characteristics, host of origin and host ranges. All strains tested except for Ps. syr. maculicola 4326 isolated from radish ( Raphanus sativus L.) constitute a closely related group. No polymorphism was seen among strains probed with the 5.7 and 2.3 kb Eco RI fragments which lie adjacent to the hrp cluster of Ps. syr. tomato and the 8.6 kb Eco RI insert of pBG2, a plasmid carrying the β-glucosidase gene(s). All strains tested had overlapping host ranges. In contrast to this, comparison of strains by RFLP patterns of sequences homologous to the 4.5 kb Hind III fragment of pRut2 and nutritional properties distinguished four groups. Group 1, consisting of strains of pathovars maculicola, tomato and apii , had similar RFLP patterns and used homoserine but not sorbitol as carbon sources. Group 2, consisting of strains of pathovars maculicola and tomato , differed from Group 1 in RFLP patterns and did not use either homoserine or sorbitol. Group 3 was similar to Group 2 in RFLP patterns but utilized homoserine and sorbitol. This group included strains of the pathovars tomato and antirrhini , and a strain isolated from squash. Group 4, a single strain of Ps. syr. maculicola isolated from radish, had unique RFLP patterns and resembled Group 3 nutritionally. The evolutionary relationships of these strains are discussed.     

Some characteristics of Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola dissociants

Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola dissociants producing colonies of different morphotype were found to possess similar biochemical and serological properties but different virulence to the host plant. The heterogeneous extracellular and intracellular lipopolysaccharide-protein complexes of the dissociants differed in their chemical composition and biological activity towards test plants.     

Some Characteristics of Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola Dissociants

Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola dissociants producing colonies of different morphotypes were found to possess similar biochemical and serological properties but different virulence to the host plant. The heterogeneous extracellular and intracellular lipopolysaccharide–protein complexes of the dissociants differed in their chemical composition and biological activity towards test plants.     

Quantitative trait loci for partial resistance to Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola in Arabidopsis thaliana

Segregation of partial resistance to Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola (Psm) ES4326 was studied in the recombinant inbred population created from accessions (ecotypes) Columbia (Col‐4), the more susceptible parent, and Landsberg (Ler‐0). Plants were spray inoculated with lux‐transformed bacteria in experiments to measure susceptibility. The amount of disease produced on a range of Col × Ler lines by spray inoculation was highly correlated with that produced by pressure infiltration of bacteria into the apoplast. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis identified four loci that contributed to partial resistance: QRps.JIC‐1.1, QRps.JIC‐2.1, QRps.JIC‐3.1 and QRps.JIC‐5.1 on chromosomes 1, 2, 3 and 5, respectively. QRps.JIC‐3.1, located 8.45 cM from the top of the consensus genetic map of chromosome 3, had a large, approximately additive effect on partial resistance, explaining 50% of the genetic variation in this population. Fine mapping narrowed the region within which this QTL was located to 62 genes. A list of candidate genes included several major classes of resistance gene.     

Molecular and Physiological Characterization of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato and Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola Strains That Produce the Phytotoxin Coronatine

The chlorosis-inducing phytotoxin coronatine is produced by several Pseudomonas syringae pathovars, including glycinea, morsprunorum, atropurpurea, and the closely related tomato and maculicola. To date, all coronatine-producing pv. glycinea, morsprunorum, and atropurpurea strains that have been examined carry the gene cluster that controls toxin production on a large plasmid. In the present study the genomic location of the coronatine gene cluster was determined for coronatine-producing strains of the pv. tomato-maculicola group by subjecting their genomic DNA to pulsed-field electrophoresis and Southern blot analysis with a hybridization probe from the coronatine gene cluster. The cluster was chromosomally borne in 10 of the 22 strains screened. These 10 strains infected both crucifers and tomatoes but could not use sorbitol as a sole source of carbon. The remaining 12 coronatine-producing strains had plasmid-borne toxin gene clusters and used sorbitol as a carbon source. Only one of these strains was pathogenic on both crucifers and tomatoes; the remainder infected just tomatoes. Restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the pv. tomato-maculicola coronatine gene clusters was performed with probes from P. syringae pv. tomato DC3000, a tomato and crucifer pathogen. Although the coronatine cluster appeared, in general, to be highly conserved across the pv. tomato-maculicola group, there were significant differences between plasmid-borne and chromosomally borne genes. The extensively studied coronatine cluster of pv. glycinea 4180 closely resembled the plasmid-borne clusters of the pv. tomato-maculicola group.     

Mqo,a Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle Enzyme,Is Required for Virulence of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato Strain DC3000 on Arabidopsis thaliana

Plant pathogenic bacteria, such as Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato strain DC3000, the causative agent of tomato bacterial speck disease, grow to high levels in the apoplastic space between plant cells. Colonization of plant tissue requires expression of virulence factors that modify the apoplast to make it more suitable for pathogen growth or facilitate adaptation of the bacteria to the apoplastic environment. To identify new virulence factors involved in these processes, DC3000 Tn5 transposon insertion mutants with reduced virulence on Arabidopsis thaliana were identified. In one of these mutants, the Tn5 insertion disrupted the malate:quinone oxidoreductase gene (mqo), which encodes an enzyme of the tricarboxylic acid cycle. mqo mutants do not grow to wild-type levels in plant tissue at early time points during infection. Further, plants infected with mqo mutants develop significantly reduced disease symptoms, even when the growth of the mqo mutant reaches wild-type levels at late stages of infection. Mutants lacking mqo function grow more slowly in culture than wild-type bacteria when dicarboxylates are the only available carbon source. To explore whether dicarboxylates are important for growth of DC3000 in the apoplast, we disrupted the dctA1 dicarboxylate transporter gene. DC3000 mutants lacking dctA1 do not grow to wild-type levels in planta, indicating that transport and utilization of dicarboxylates are important for virulence of DC3000. Thus, mqo may be required by DC3000 to meet nutritional requirements in the apoplast and may provide insight into the mechanisms underlying the important, but poorly understood process of adaptation to the host environment.One important aspect of interactions between plant pathogens and their hosts is the ability of the pathogen to obtain nutrients within the plant tissue. Nutrient acquisition is essential for growth within the host, since both cell division and DNA replication can be influenced by nutrient availability. Bacterial plant pathogens differ in the strategies they use to get necessary nutrients during infection. Some pathogens, such as Agrobacterium tumefaciens, elicit production of specific carbon and nitrogen sources by the plant (1). Other pathogens may rely on metabolites that are readily available in the plant apoplast or may stimulate the release of water or nutrients from surrounding plant cells (27).Little is known about how pathogenic Pseudomonas syringae strains acquire nutrients when growing in their hosts. P. syringae strains are gram-negative gammaproteobacteria, which as a group cause disease on many agriculturally important plants. For example, P. syringae pv. tomato strain DC3000 causes disease on tomato, A. thaliana, and several agriculturally important Brassicas, such as turnip, mustard, collard, and cauliflower (8, 51). Initially, DC3000 colonizes plant surfaces and then enters the plant tissue through natural openings (such as stomata) or wounds (34, 38). DC3000 then establishes itself in the plant apoplast, the intercellular space between plant cells (38). Once in the apoplast of susceptible hosts, DC3000 multiplies to high levels, and the infected plants develop disease symptoms, including chlorosis (yellowing) of the leaf tissue and necrotic spots or patches called lesions (38, 49). Pseudomonads, such as P. aeruginosa and P. fluorescens, preferentially utilize tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle intermediates (20, 29, 33, 44), and DC3000 utilizes these carbon sources in culture (19). Some studies to investigate nutrient acquisition of DC3000 have been carried out (3, 7, 40); however, it is not clear what carbon sources DC3000 utilizes when growing in plant tissue.Several virulence factors are necessary for DC3000 to enter, grow inside the plant, and cause disease. Like many other bacterial pathogens, DC3000 uses a type III secretion system (TTSS) (15), which is encoded by the hrp/hrc genes, to inject effector proteins into plant cells (16, 27). Many of these effectors suppress host defenses, and it is likely that some may be involved in modulating the apoplastic environment or nutrient acquisition (16). DC3000 also produces the phytotoxin coronatine, which promotes entry of the bacteria into the plant apoplast by stimulating the opening of stomata (34) and is required for bacterial growth in the apoplast by suppressing salicylic acid (SA)-dependent host defenses (4, 45). Coronatine also promotes disease symptom development via an SA-independent mechanism (4). While much emphasis has been placed on exploring how type III-secreted effectors and coronatine promote DC3000 virulence, other factors are also likely to be important during pathogenesis.To identify additional factors involved in pathogenesis, we undertook a genetic screen to identify novel virulence factors (5, 24). DC3000 mutants with reduced virulence were identified by assaying for their ability to elicit disease symptoms on A. thaliana and tomato plants (24, 37). One of these mutants, AK4C9, had reduced virulence on both hosts. The gene disrupted in this mutant is the malate:quinone oxidoreductase gene (mqo), which encodes an enzyme of the TCA cycle. mqo mutants grow more slowly than wild-type DC3000 in planta and in culture when dicarboxylates are the only carbon source, suggesting that dicarboxylates are important for the growth of DC3000 in the apoplast. In the present study, we explore the role of Mqo and a dicarboxylate transporter, DctA1, in DC3000 pathogenesis.     

A Virus-Induced Gene Silencing Screen Identifies a Role for Thylakoid Formation1 in Pseudomonas syringae pv tomato Symptom Development in Tomato and Arabidopsis

Pseudomonas syringae pv tomato DC3000 (Pst DC3000), which causes disease in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), produces coronatine (COR), a non-host-specific phytotoxin. COR, which functions as a jasmonate mimic, is required for full virulence of Pst DC3000 and for the induction of chlorosis in host plants. Previous genetic screens based on insensitivity to COR and/or methyl jasmonate identified several potential targets for COR and methyl jasmonate. In this study, we utilized Nicotiana benthamiana and virus-induced gene silencing to individually reduce the expression of over 4,000 genes. The silenced lines of N. benthamiana were then screened for altered responses to purified COR. Using this forward genetics approach, several genes were identified with altered responses to COR. These were designated as ALC (for altered COR response) genes. When silenced, one of the identified genes, ALC1, produced a hypersensitive/necrosis-like phenotype upon COR application in a Coronatine-Insensitive1 (COI1)-dependent manner. To understand the involvement of ALC1 during the Pst DC3000-host interaction, we used the nucleotide sequence of ALC1 and identified its ortholog in Arabidopsis (Thylakoid Formation1 [THF1]) and tomato (SlALC1). In pathogenicity assays performed on Arabidopsis thf1 mutant and SlALC1-silenced tomato plants, Pst DC3000 induced accelerated coalescing necrotic lesions. Furthermore, we showed that COR affects ALC1 localization in chloroplasts in a COI1-dependent manner. In conclusion, our results show that the virus-induced gene silencing-based forward genetic screen has the potential to identify new players in COR signaling and disease-associated necrotic cell death.In nature, plants come in contact with numerous microbes that are potential pathogens. Active plant defense mechanisms, in general, involve a complex network of three genetically distinct signaling pathways, known as the salicylic acid (SA), jasmonic acid (JA), and ethylene pathways (Kunkel and Brooks, 2002; Glazebrook, 2005). Pathogens, in turn, have coevolved by developing mechanisms that suppress plant defense pathways by secreting virulence factors. Several pathovars of Pseudomonas syringae produce phytotoxins. In plants, these phytotoxins generally induce chlorosis (e.g. coronatine [COR], phaseolotoxin, and tabtoxin; Mitchell, 1976; Gnanamanickam et al., 1982; Levi and Durbin, 1986) or necrosis (e.g. syringomycin and syringopeptin; Paynter and Alconero, 1979; Iacobellis et al., 1992). Bacterial toxins act as virulence factors and contribute to increased disease severity by facilitating bacterial movement in planta (Patil et al., 1974), lesion size (Bender et al., 1987; Xu and Gross, 1988), pathogen multiplication (Bender et al., 1987; Feys et al., 1994; Mittal and Davis, 1995), and suppression of plant defense (Uppalapati et al., 2007, 2008).COR, a phytotoxin produced by P. syringae pv tomato DC3000 (Pst DC3000), is induced in the presence of the plant host metabolites such as malic, citric, shikimic, and quinic acids, which are present in leaf extracts and apoplastic fluids of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum; Li et al., 1998). COR contributes to the virulence of Pst DC3000 in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), tomato, collard (Brassica oleracea var viridis), and turnip (Brassica rapa var utilis; Brooks et al., 2004; Elizabeth and Bender, 2007; Uppalapati et al., 2007). It has been shown that COR has structural and functional resemblance to 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid, methyl jasmonate (MeJA), and related derivatives known as the jasmonates (JAs; Feys et al., 1994; Weiler et al., 1994; Uppalapati et al., 2005). MeJA is a plant growth hormone that plays a key role in plant defense response to biotic and abiotic stress (Howe et al., 1996; McConn et al., 1997; Vijayan et al., 1998; Truman et al., 2007).During a compatible interaction with a host, Pst DC3000 infection results in the activation of the JA signaling pathway (Zhao et al., 2003; Laurie-Berry et al., 2006; Uppalapati et al., 2007). This causes the suppression of the SA pathway owing to its antagonistic relation with the JA pathway (Kloek et al., 2001; Kunkel and Brooks, 2002; Zhao et al., 2003; Uppalapati et al., 2007). The suppression of the SA pathway during the Pst DC3000-host interaction is thought to be caused by COR, which functions as a molecular mimic of JAs (Feys et al., 1994; Bender et al., 1999; Staswick and Tiryaki, 2004).Pst DC3000 causes disease on several plant species including tomato and Arabidopsis. A typical symptom on tomato leaves is bacterial speck, which includes necrosis surrounded by a chlorotic halo (Mittal and Davis, 1995; Zhao et al., 2003). In Arabidopsis, the infected area exhibits water-soaked lesions accompanied by diffused chlorosis (Mittal and Davis, 1995; Brooks et al., 2004). Pst DC3000 infection also causes chlorosis in other plants belonging to the Brassicaceae family, such as collard and turnip (Elizabeth and Bender, 2007). In addition to chlorosis, Pst DC3000-infected collard plants exhibit water-soaked lesions and anthocyanin, suggesting that Pst DC3000 elicits unique responses in different plants. Studies have shown that tomato plants inoculated with a COR-defective mutant of Pst DC3000 did not develop typical chlorotic symptoms; furthermore, COR contributed to pathogen fitness and disease development in a SA-independent manner (Uppalapati et al., 2007). Tomato leaf tissues treated with purified COR show chlorosis (Gnanamanickam et al., 1982; Uppalapati et al., 2005, 2007). Unlike tomato, purified COR does not elicit chlorosis on Arabidopsis leaves (Bent et al., 1992; Mach et al., 2001). However, in Arabidopsis, COR is required for full disease symptom development and pathogen fitness in a SA-dependent manner (Kloek et al., 2001; Brooks et al., 2004). These results suggest that COR functions as an important virulence factor in tomato and Arabidopsis, although it functions differently in these hosts.More recently, we have demonstrated a role for COR-induced effects on photosynthetic machinery and reactive oxygen species (ROS) in modulating necrotic cell death during bacterial speck disease of tomato (Ishiga et al., 2009a). Despite our present understanding of COR function, it is not clear how chlorosis impacts or benefits pathogen virulence. Furthermore, the identity of host molecular targets for COR and the downstream signaling cascades that ensue are not well understood. Based on similarities between COR and JAs in terms of structure and function (Feys et al., 1994; Uppalapati et al., 2005), it seems likely that COR and JA interact with at least one common host receptor (Katsir et al., 2008). Thus, in addition to furthering our understanding of disease development, studies aimed at understanding the molecular mechanism of COR may provide information on JA-mediated plant defense.In an effort to identify plant proteins that are the molecular targets of COR, we used a tobacco rattle virus (TRV)-based virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) as a fast-forward genetics tool (Liu et al., 2001a, 2001b; Anand et al., 2007) to screen a Nicotiana benthamiana cDNA library for genes that are involved in the response to COR. We identified a N. benthamiana gene, ALC1 (for altered COR response), that when silenced displayed an unexpected hypersensitive/necrosis-like phenotype rather than a typical chlorotic phenotype in response to COR application. ALC1 has homology to an Arabidopsis gene, Thylakoid Formation1 (THF1; Wang et al., 2004). The pathogenicity assays performed in this study indicate that loss of ALC1/THF1 leads to accelerated cell death in response to Pst DC3000 infection in both tomato and Arabidopsis.     

Arabidopsis HARMLESS TO OZONE LAYER Protein Methylates a Glucosinolate Breakdown Product and Functions in Resistance to Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola

Almost all of the chlorine-containing gas emitted from natural sources is methyl chloride (CH₃Cl), which contributes to the destruction of the stratospheric ozone layer. Tropical and subtropical plants emit substantial amounts of CH₃Cl. A gene involved in CH₃Cl emission from Arabidopsis was previously identified and designated HARMLESS TO OZONE LAYER (hereafter AtHOL1) based on the mutant phenotype. Our previous studies demonstrated that AtHOL1 and its homologs, AtHOL2 and AtHOL3, have S-adenosyl-l-methionine-dependent methyltransferase activities. However, the physiological functions of AtHOLs have yet to be elucidated. In the present study, our comparative kinetic analyses with possible physiological substrates indicated that all of the AtHOLs have low activities toward chloride. AtHOL1 was highly reactive to thiocyanate (NCS⁻), a pseudohalide, synthesizing methylthiocyanate (CH₃SCN) with a very high k_cat/K_m value. We demonstrated in vivo that substantial amounts of NCS⁻ were synthesized upon tissue damage in Arabidopsis and that NCS⁻ was largely derived from myrosinase-mediated hydrolysis of glucosinolates. Analyses with the T-DNA insertion Arabidopsis mutants (hol1, hol2, and hol3) revealed that only hol1 showed increased sensitivity to NCS⁻ in medium and a concomitant lack of CH₃SCN synthesis upon tissue damage. Bacterial growth assays indicated that the conversion of NCS⁻ into CH₃SCN dramatically increased antibacterial activities against Arabidopsis pathogens that normally invade the wound site. Furthermore, hol1 seedlings showed an increased susceptibility toward an Arabidopsis pathogen, Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola. Here we propose that AtHOL1 is involved in glucosinolate metabolism and defense against phytopathogens. Moreover, CH₃Cl synthesized by AtHOL1 could be considered a byproduct of NCS⁻ metabolism.Methyl chloride (CH₃Cl) is the most abundant halohydrocarbon emitted into the atmosphere and constitutes about 17% of the chlorine currently in the stratosphere (1). CH₃Cl is derived mainly from natural sources and contributes to the destruction of the stratospheric ozone layer. As the total abundance of ozone-depleting gases such as chlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere has begun to decrease in recent years as a result of The Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer, the impact of CH₃Cl emission from natural sources will become greater on the atmospheric chemistry. CH₃Cl emission into the atmosphere has been estimated at 1,700–13,600 Gg/year (1), which underscores the great uncertainty of the estimation. Oceans (2), biomass burning (3), wood-rotting fungi, and coastal salt marshes (4) are the major sources of CH₃Cl production. Recently, it was reported that large amounts of CH₃Cl are emitted from tropical and subtropical plants, which are hence considered as the major sources of CH₃Cl (5–7). It was estimated that the CH₃Cl emission from tropical plants could account for 30–50% of the global CH₃Cl emission (8). To accomplish an accurate estimation of CH₃Cl production in the atmosphere through “bottom-up” approaches, elucidating the mechanisms and physiological functions of CH₃Cl emission from plants will be important.The biological synthesis of methyl halides has been demonstrated mainly by biochemical analyses. The enzymatic activities that transfer a methyl group from S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM)² to halide ions (Cl⁻, Br⁻, I⁻), which synthesize methyl halides, were first discovered in cell-free extracts of Phellinus pomaceus (a white rot fungus), Endocladia muricata (a marine red alga), and Mesembryanthemum crystallinum (ice plant, a halophytic plant) (9). Enzyme purification and cDNA cloning of the methyl chloride transferase (MCT) was first reported with Batis maritima, a halophytic plant that grows abundantly in salt marshes. As high concentrations of ions such as Cl⁻ are often detrimental to plants, halophytic plants are considered to possess various salt tolerance mechanisms. MCT was hypothesized to control and regulate the internal concentration of Cl⁻, rich in the habitat in which halophytic plant grows (10, 11).In the meantime, purification of thiol methyltransferase (TMT), which methylates bisulfide (HS⁻) and halide (Cl⁻, Br⁻, I⁻) ions was reported with cabbage, Brassica oleracea (12). The purified and recombinant TMTs were later shown to also methylate the thiocyanate ion (NCS⁻), which is called pseudohalide because of its chemical properties similar to halide ions (13, 14). NCS⁻ is a hydrolysis product found in some glucosinolates, which are secondary metabolites found mainly in the order Brassicales including the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana (15). Upon tissue damage such as by insect or herbivore attack, glucosinolates are hydrolyzed by myrosinase (β-thioglucosidase) into biologically active compounds including isothiocyanates. Isothiocyanates derived from indole glucosinolates and 4-hydroxybenzyl glucosinolates are reported to be highly unstable and yield NCS⁻ upon reacting with various nucleophiles (15–17). Based on the enzymatic activity, the physiological role of TMT was speculated to metabolize glucosinolate breakdown products (14). However, there are no reported studies that examine these MCT and TMT hypotheses through in vivo experiments.An Arabidopsis homolog of MCT was also identified, and its T-DNA insertion Arabidopsis mutants were analyzed (18). Because the gene disruption eliminated almost all of the methyl halide emissions from the mutants, the gene was revealed to be involved in methyl halide synthesis and was designated HOL (HARMLESS TO OZONE LAYER; denoted as AtHOL1 in our studies) based on the mutant phenotype (18). Recently, we identified AtHOL1 homologs AtHOL2 and AtHOL3 in Arabidopsis, and we demonstrated biochemically that the three recombinant AtHOLs have SAM-dependent methyltransferase activities (19). In this study, reverse genetic and biochemical analyses of all AtHOL isoforms revealed that AtHOL1 in vivo is involved in the methylation of NCS⁻ produced by glucosinolate hydrolysis. Although there are several studies that have examined the biological activities of glucosinolate hydrolysis products, the mechanisms of NCS⁻ synthesis and its methylation to methyl thiocyanate (CH₃SCN) have yet to be reported in detail. The biological activity and physiological function of CH₃SCN synthesized by AtHOL1 was also examined.     

The genetic network controlling the Arabidopsis transcriptional response to Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola: roles of major regulators and the phytotoxin coronatine

Expression profiling of wild-type plants and mutants with defects in key components of the defense signaling network was used to model the Arabidopsis network 24 h after infection by Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola ES4326. Results using the Affymetrix ATH1 array revealed that expression levels of most pathogen-responsive genes were affected by mutations in coi1, ein2, npr1, pad4, or sid2. These five mutations defined a small number of different expression patterns displayed by the majority of pathogen-responsive genes. P. syringae pv. tomato strain DC3000 elicited a much weaker salicylic acid (SA) response than ES4326. Additional mutants were profiled using a custom array. Profiles of pbs3 and ndr1 revealed major effects of these mutations and allowed PBS3 and NDR1 to be placed between the EDS1/PAD4 node and the SA synthesis node in the defense network. Comparison of coi1, dde2, and jar1 profiles showed that many genes were affected by coi1 but very few were affected by dde2 or jar1. Profiles of coi1 plants infected with ES4326 were very similar to those of wild-type plants infected with bacteria unable to produce the phytotoxin coronatine, indicating that, essentially, all COI1-dependent gene expression changes in this system are caused by coronatine.     

A Genetic Screen for Mutations Affecting Cell Division in the Arabidopsis thaliana Embryo Identifies Seven Loci Required for Cytokinesis

Cytokinesis in plants involves the formation of unique cellular structures such as the phragmoplast and the cell plate, both of which are required to divide the cell after nuclear division. In order to isolate genes that are involved in de novo cell wall formation, we performed a large-scale, microscope-based screen for Arabidopsis mutants that severely impair cytokinesis in the embryo. We recovered 35 mutations that form abnormally enlarged cells with multiple, often polyploid nuclei and incomplete cell walls. These mutants represent seven genes, four of which have previously been implicated in phragmoplast or cell plate function. Mutations in two loci show strongly reduced transmission through the haploid gametophytic generation. Molecular cloning of both corresponding genes reveals that one is represented by hypomorphic alleles of the kinesin-5 gene RADIALLY SWOLLEN 7 (homologous to tobacco kinesin-related protein TKRP125), and that the other gene corresponds to the Arabidopsis FUSED ortholog TWO-IN-ONE (originally identified based on its function in pollen development). No mutations that completely abolish the formation of cross walls in diploid cells were found. Our results support the idea that cytokinesis in the diploid and haploid generations involve similar mechanisms.     

Characterization of the argA Gene Required for Arginine Biosynthesis and Syringomycin Production by Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae

Two types of necrosis-inducing lipodepsipeptide toxins, called syringomycin and syringopeptin, are major virulence factors of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae strain B301D. A previous study showed that a locus, called syrA, was required for both syringomycin production and plant pathogenicity, and the syrA locus was speculated to encode a regulator of toxin production. In this study, sequence analysis of the 8-kb genomic DNA fragment that complements the syrA phenotype revealed high conservation among a broad spectrum of fluorescent pseudomonads. The putative protein encoded by open reading frame 4 (ORF4) (1,299 bp) in the syrA locus region exhibited 85% identity to ArgA, which is involved in arginine biosynthesis in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Growth of strain W4S2545, the syrA mutant, required supplementation of N minimal medium with arginine. Similarly, syringomycin production of syrA mutant W4S2545 was restored by the addition of arginine to culture media. Furthermore, the insertion of Tn5 in the genome of the syrA mutant W4S2545 was localized between nucleotides 146 and 147 in ORF4, and syringomycin production was complemented in trans with the wild-type DNA fragment containing intact ORF4. These results demonstrate that the syrA locus is the argA gene of P. syringae pv. syringae and that argA is directly involved in arginine biosynthesis and therefore indirectly affects syringomycin production because of arginine deficiency.     

Periplasmic glucans of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae.

We report the initial characterization of glucans present in the periplasmic space of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae (strain R32). These compounds were found to be neutral, unsubstituted, and composed solely of glucose. Their size ranges from 6 to 13 glucose units/mol. Linkage studies and nuclear magnetic resonance analyses demonstrated that the glucans are linked by beta-1,2 and beta-1,6 glycosidic bonds. In contrast to the periplasmic glucans found in other plant pathogenic bacteria, the glucans of P. syringae pv. syringae are not cyclic but are highly branched structures. Acetolysis studies demonstrated that the backbone consists of beta-1,2-linked glucose units to which the branches are attached by beta-1,6 linkages. These periplasmic glucans were more abundant when the osmolarity of the growth medium was lower. Thus, P. syringae pv. syringae appears to synthesize periplasmic glucans in response to the osmolarity of the medium. The structural characteristics of these glucans are very similar to the membrane-derived oligosaccharides of Escherichia coli, apart from the neutral character, which contrasts with the highly anionic E. coli membrane-derived oligosaccharides.     

Genetic Characterization of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae Strains from Stone Fruits in California

Strains of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae were isolated from healthy and diseased stone fruit tissues sampled from 43 orchard sites in California in 1995 and 1996. These strains, together with P. syringae strains from other hosts and pathovars, were tested for pathogenicity and the presence of the syrB and syrC genes and were genetically characterized by using enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC) primers and PCR. All 89 strains of P. syringae pv. syringae tested were moderately to highly pathogenic on Lovell peach seedlings regardless of the host of origin, while strains of other pathovars exhibited low or no pathogenicity. The 19 strains of P. syringae pv. syringae examined by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis contained the syrB and syrC genes, whereas no hybridization occurred with 4 strains of other P. syringae pathovars. The P. syringae pv. syringae strains from stone fruit, except for a strain from New Zealand, generated ERIC genomic fingerprints which shared four fragments of similar mobility. Of the P. syringae pv. syringae strains tested from other hosts, only strains from rose, kiwi, and pear generated genomic fingerprints that had the same four fragments as the stone fruit strains. Analysis of the ERIC fingerprints from P. syringae pv. syringae strains showed that the strains isolated from stone fruits formed a distinct cluster separate from most of the strains isolated from other hosts. These results provide evidence of host specialization within the diverse pathovar P. syringae pv. syringae.     

A Differential Fluorescence-Based Genetic Screen Identifies Listeria monocytogenes Determinants Required for Intracellular Replication

Listeria monocytogenes is a Gram-positive, facultative intracellular pathogen capable of causing severe invasive disease with high mortality rates in humans. While previous studies have largely elucidated the bacterial and host cell mechanisms necessary for invasion, vacuolar escape, and subsequent cell-to-cell spread, the L. monocytogenes factors required for rapid replication within the restrictive environment of the host cell cytosol are poorly understood. In this report, we describe a differential fluorescence-based genetic screen utilizing fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) and high-throughput microscopy to identify L. monocytogenes mutants defective in optimal intracellular replication. Bacteria harboring deletions within the identified gene menD or pepP were defective for growth in primary murine macrophages and plaque formation in monolayers of L2 fibroblasts, thus validating the ability of the screening method to identify intracellular replication-defective mutants. Genetic complementation of the menD and pepP deletion strains rescued the in vitro intracellular infection defects. Furthermore, the menD deletion strain displayed a general extracellular replication defect that could be complemented by growth under anaerobic conditions, while the intracellular growth defect of this strain could be complemented by the addition of exogenous menaquinone. As prior studies have indicated the importance of aerobic metabolism for L. monocytogenes infection, these findings provide further evidence for the importance of menaquinone and aerobic metabolism for L. monocytogenes pathogenesis. Lastly, both the menD and pepP deletion strains were attenuated during in vivo infection of mice. These findings demonstrate that the differential fluorescence-based screening approach provides a powerful tool for the identification of intracellular replication determinants in multiple bacterial systems.     

Chemical and biological characterization of lipopolysaccharides from the Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola IMV 381 collection culture and its dissociants

Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) were isolated from the crude bacterial mass of the Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola IMV 381 collection culture and its virulent and avirulent subcultures isolated earlier from the heterogeneous collection culture due to its natural variability during long-term storage. The composition, immunochemical properties, and certain parameters of the biological activity of the LPS preparations obtained were studied. The structural parts of the LPS macromolecule--lipid A, the core oligosaccharide, and O-specific polysaccharide (OPS)--were isolated and characterized. The following fatty acids were identified in the lipid A composition of all cultures: 3-OH-C10:0, C12:0, 2-OH-C12:0, 3-OH-C12:0, C16:1, C16:0, C18:1, and C18:0. Glucosamine (GlcN), ethanolamine (EtN), phosphoethanolamine (EtN-P), and phosphorus (P) were revealed in the hydrophilic portion of the macromolecule. In the core portion of the LPS macromolecule, glucose (Glc), rhamnose (Rha), GlcN, galactosamine (GalN), 2-keto-3-deoxyoctulosonic acid (KDO), alanine (Ala), and P were found. The peculiarities of the structure of LPS isolated from the stable collection culture (LPS(stab)) and its virulent (LPS(vir)) and avirulent (LPS(air)) subcultures were studied. LPS(vir) and LPS(avir) were identical in the monosaccharide composition and contained as the main components L-rhamnose (L-Rha) and 3-acetamido-3,6-dideoxy-D-galactose (D-Fuc3NAc), like LPS(stab) studied earlier. The NMR spectra of LPS(vir) were identical to the spectra of LPS(stab), whose O-chain repeating unit structure was studied by us earlier, whereas LPS(avir) differed from LPS(vir) in the NMR spectrum and was identified by us as the SR form. LPS(avir) was serologically identical to LP(stab) and LPS(vir). Hence, the degree of polymerism of the LPS O-chain of P. syringae pv. maculicola IMV 381 is the main virulence factor in the infected model plants. Serological relationships were studied between P. syringae pv. maculicola IMV 381 and the strains of other pathovars with structurally similar LPS.     

A new syringopeptin produced by bean strains of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae

Two strains (B728a and Y37) of the phytopathogenic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae isolated from bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) plants were shown to produce in culture both syringomycin, a lipodepsinonapeptide secreted by the majority of the strains of the bacterium, and a new form of syringopeptin, SP(22)Phv. The structure of the latter metabolite was elucidated by the combined use of mass spectrometry (MS), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and chemical procedures. Comparative phytotoxic and antimicrobial assays showed that SP(22)Phv did not differ substantially from the previously characterized syringopeptin 22 (SP(22)) as far as toxicity to plants was concerned, but was less active in inhibiting the growth of the test fungi Rhodotorula pilimanae and Geotrichum candidum and of the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus megaterium.     

Identification of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato genes induced during infection of Arabidopsis thaliana

Phytopathogenic bacteria possess a large number of genes that allow them to grow and cause disease on plants. Many of these genes should be induced when the bacteria come in contact with plant tissue. We used a modified in vivo expression technology (IVET) approach to identify genes from the plant pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato that are induced upon infection of Arabidopsis thaliana and isolated over 500 in planta-expressed (ipx) promoter fusions. Sequence analysis of 79 fusions revealed several known and potential virulence genes, including hrp/hrc, avr and coronatine biosynthetic genes. In addition, we identified metabolic genes presumably important for adaptation to growth in plant tissue, as well as several genes with unknown function that may encode novel virulence factors. Many ipx fusions, including several corresponding to novel genes, are dependent on HrpL, an alternative RNA polymerase sigma factor that regulates the expression of virulence genes. Expression analysis indicated that several ipx fusions are strongly induced upon inoculation into plant tissue. Disruption of one ipx gene, conserved effector locus (CEL) orf1, encoding a putative lytic murein transglycosylase, resulted in decreased virulence of P. syringae. Our results demonstrate that this screen can be used successfully to isolate genes that are induced in planta, including many novel genes potentially involved in pathogenesis.     

Layered basal defenses underlie non-host resistance of Arabidopsis to Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola

Arabidopsis is a non-host for Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola NPS3121 (Pph), a bacterial pathogen of bean. Pph does not induce a hypersensitive response in Arabidopsis. Here we show that Arabidopsis instead resists Pph with multi-layered basal defense. Our approach was: (i) to identify defense readouts induced by Pph; (ii) to determine whether mutations in known Arabidopsis defense genes disrupt Pph-induced defense signaling; (iii) to determine whether heterologous type III effectors from pathogens of Arabidopsis suppress Pph-induced defense signaling, and (iv) to ascertain how basal defenses contribute to resistance against Pph by individually or multiply disrupting defense signaling pathways with mutations and heterologous type III effectors. We demonstrate that Pph elicits a minimum of three basal defense-signaling pathways in Arabidopsis. These pathways have unique readouts, including PR-1 protein accumulation and morphologically distinct types of callose deposition. Further, they require distinct defense genes, including PMR4, RAR1, SID2, NPR1, and PAD4 . Finally, they are suppressed differentially by heterologous type III effectors, including AvrRpm1 and HopM1. Pph growth is enhanced only when multiple defense pathways are disrupted. For example, mutation of NPR1 or SID2 combined with the action of AvrRpm1 and HopM1 renders Arabidopsis highly susceptible to Pph. Thus, non-host resistance of Arabidopsis to Pph is based on multiple, individually effective layers of basal defense.