A common plant cell-wall protein HyPRP1 has dual roles as a positive regulator of cell death and a negative regulator of basal defense against pathogens

Although hybrid proline-rich proteins (HyPRPs) are ubiquitous in plants, little is known about their roles other than as cell-wall structural proteins. We identified the gene HyPRP1 in Capsicum annuum and Nicotiana benthamiana, which encodes a protein containing proline-rich domain and eight-cysteine motif (8CM) that is constitutively expressed in various organs, mostly in the root, but is down-regulated upon inoculation with either incompatible or compatible pathogens. Ectopic expression of HyPRP1 in plants accelerated cell death, showing developmental abnormality with down-regulation of ROS-scavenging genes, and enhanced pathogen susceptibility suppressing expression of defense-related genes. Conversely, silencing of HyPRP1 suppressed pathogen-induced cell death, but enhanced disease resistance, with up-regulation of defense-related genes and inhibition of in planta growth of bacterial pathogens independently of signal molecule-mediated pathways. Furthermore, the secreted 8CM was sufficient for these HyPRP1 functions. Together, our results suggest that a common plant cell-wall structural protein, HyPRP1, performs distinct dual roles in positive regulation of cell death and negative regulation of basal defense against pathogen.     

Identification of the soybean HyPRP family and specific gene response to Asian soybean rust disease

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merril], one of the most important crop species in the world, is very susceptible to abiotic and biotic stress. Soybean plants have developed a variety of molecular mechanisms that help them survive stressful conditions. Hybrid proline-rich proteins (HyPRPs) constitute a family of cell-wall proteins with a variable N-terminal domain and conserved C-terminal domain that is phylogenetically related to non-specific lipid transfer proteins. Members of the HyPRP family are involved in basic cellular processes and their expression and activity are modulated by environmental factors. In this study, microarray analysis and real time RT-qPCR were used to identify putative HyPRP genes in the soybean genome and to assess their expression in different plant tissues. Some of the genes were also analyzed by time-course real time RT-qPCR in response to infection by Phakopsora pachyrhizi, the causal agent of Asian soybean rust disease. Our findings indicate that the time of induction of a defense pathway is crucial in triggering the soybean resistance response to P. pachyrhizi. This is the first study to identify the soybean HyPRP group B family and to analyze disease-responsive GmHyPRP during infection by P. pachyrhizi.     

Differential expression of a hydroxyproline-rich cell-wall protein gene in embryonic tissues of Zea mays L.

A hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGP) component of the maize cell wall was shown to be present in different organs of the plant by extraction of cell wall proteins and detection by Western blotting and immunocytochemistry. Antibodies raised against the protein or against synthetic peptides designed from the protein sequence immunoprecipitated a proline-rich polypeptide which was synthesized in-vitro from poly(A) ⁺ RNA extracted from different tissues of the plant and from the complete in-vitro-transcribed mRNA. A very low amount of the protein was found in immature embryos. In particular, the protein could not be detected in the scutellum either by Western blotting or by immunocytochemistry. In agreement with this finding, HRGP mRNA was barely detected in the scutellum, in contrast to its accumulation in the embryo axis. Our results indicate the existence of a unique cell wall structure in embryonic tissues from maize as well as a tissuespecific component of the control of maize HRGP gene expression, distinct to others already described such as cell division.Abbreviations HRGP(s) hydroxyproline-richglycoprotein(s) - DAP days after pollination The present work was supported by grants from Plan Nacional de Investigation Cientifica y Técnica (grant BI088-0242) and European Communities (grant BAP-374). L.R.-A. is the recipient of a fellowship from the Plan Nacional de Formación de Personal Investigador.     

Temporal and spatial expression pattern of the OSVP1 and OSEM genes during seed development in rice

The spatial and temporal expression patterns of the rice VP1 (OSVP1) gene, as well as the OSEM gene which it controls, were studied during seed development by in situ hybridization and immuno-localization techniques. The expression of OSVP1 could be detected in embryos as early as 2-3 d after pollination (DAP) and thereafter became preferentially localized to shoot, radicle and vascular tissues during the embryo development at both the mRNA and protein levels. In the aleurone layers, OSVP1 mRNA and protein were detected after 6 DAP. OSEM mRNA was detectable after 6 DAP in the embryo and aleurone tissue. The spatial distribution within the embryo of OSEM mRNA and OSVP1 mRNA/protein was very similar after 6 DAP. Transgenic rice carrying a beta-glucuronidase (GUS) gene transcribed from a chimeric promoter consisting of the CaMV 35S minimal promoter (-46) and the 55-bp promoter fragment of OSEM, minimally required for ABA and VP1 regulation, also exhibited a spatial pattern of GUS expression similar to that of OSEM and OSVP1. These results suggest that (OS)VP1 is a major determinant not only of the seed specificity but also of the spatial pattern of OSEM expression in the developing seed.     

Soybean Seed Protein Genes Are Regulated Spatially during Embryogenesis

We used in situ hybridization to investigate Kunitz trypsin inhibitor gene expression programs at the cell level in soybean embryos and in transformed tobacco seeds. The major Kunitz trypsin inhibitor mRNA, designated as KTi3, is first detectable in a specific globular stage embryo region, and then becomes localized within the axis of heart, cotyledon, and maturation stage embryos. By contrast, a related Kunitz trypsin inhibitor mRNA class, designated as KTi1/2, is not detectable during early embryogenesis. Nor is the KTi1/2 mRNA detectable in the axis at later developmental stages. Outer perimeter cells of each cotyledon accumulate both KTi1/2 and KTi3 mRNAs early in maturation. These mRNAs accumulate progressively from the outside to inside of each cotyledon in a "wave-like" pattern as embryogenesis proceeds. A similar KTi3 mRNA localization pattern is observed in soybean somatic embryos and in transformed tobacco seeds. An unrelated mRNA, encoding [beta]-conglycinin storage protein, also accumulates in a wave-like pattern during soybean embryogenesis. Our results indicate that cell-specific differences in seed protein gene expression programs are established early in development, and that seed protein mRNAs accumulate in a precise cellular pattern during seed maturation. We also show that seed protein gene expression patterns are conserved at the cell level in embryos of distantly related plants, and that these patterns are established in the absence of non-embryonic tissues.     

海岛棉GbHyPRP1克隆及其转基因拟南芥抗黄萎病验证

在对黄萎病菌胁迫处理的海岛棉Pima 90-53根组织全长c DNA文库分析中,筛选到一个与黄萎病胁迫相关的杂合富含脯氨酸蛋白(hybrid proline-rich protein)基因,将其命名为Gb Hy PRP1。该基因c DNA序列全长1747 bp,开放阅读框945 bp,编码一个由314个氨基酸残基组成的蛋白,包含信号肽、N端富含脯氨酸域及C端Pollen Ole e I域。同源序列分析显示,Gb Hy PRP1与来自雷蒙德氏棉、陆地棉和亚洲棉的Hy PRP1蛋白序列相似性最高,分别为95.95%、93.87%和91.34%。q RT-PCR分析结果显示,受黄萎病菌胁迫后海岛棉根部Gb Hy PRP1表达显著下调。将Gb Hy PRP1基因克隆至植物超表达载体,农杆菌介导转化拟南芥获得转基因植株。病指统计分析表明Gb Hy PRP1过量表达显著降低了拟南芥对黄萎病的抗性。据此推测Gb Hy PRP1参与棉花抗黄萎病,可能是一个重要的负调控因子。     

Friend or foe: Hybrid proline-rich proteins determine how plants respond to beneficial and pathogenic microbes

Plant plastids generate signals, including some derived from lipids, that need to be mobilized to effect signaling. We used informatics to discover potential plastid membrane proteins involved in microbial responses in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Among these are proteins co-regulated with the systemic immunity component AZELAIC ACID INDUCED 1, a hybrid proline-rich protein (HyPRP), and HyPRP superfamily members. HyPRPs have a transmembrane domain, a proline-rich region (PRR), and a lipid transfer protein domain. The precise subcellular location(s) and function(s) are unknown for most HyPRP family members. As predicted by informatics, a subset of HyPRPs has a pool of proteins that target plastid outer envelope membranes via a mechanism that requires the PRR. Additionally, two HyPRPs may be associated with thylakoid membranes. Most of the plastid- and nonplastid-localized family members also have pools that localize to the endoplasmic reticulum, plasma membrane, or plasmodesmata. HyPRPs with plastid pools regulate, positively or negatively, systemic immunity against the pathogen Pseudomonas syringae. HyPRPs also regulate the interaction with the plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria Pseudomonas simiae WCS417 in the roots to influence colonization, root system architecture, and/or biomass. Thus, HyPRPs have broad and distinct roles in immunity, development, and growth responses to microbes and reside at sites that may facilitate signal molecule transport.

Hybrid proline-rich proteins that reside at plastid membranes and other sites have broad and distinct roles in immunity, development, and growth responses to microbes.     

Cold responsive EARLI1 type HyPRPs improve freezing survival of yeast cells and form higher order complexes in plants

Plants have large families of proteins sharing a conserved eight-cysteine-motif (8CM) domain. The biological functions of these proteins are largely unknown. EARLI1 is a cold responsive Arabidopsis gene that encodes a hybrid proline-rich protein (HyPRP) with a three-domain architecture: a putative signal peptide at the N-terminus, a proline-rich domain (PRD) in the middle, and an 8CM domain at the C-terminus. We report here that yeast cells expressing different EARLI1 genes had significantly higher rates of freezing survival than empty-vector transformed controls. Arabidopsis plants with knocked down EARLI1 genes had an increased tendency for freezing-induced cellular damage. EARLI1-GFP fluorescence in transgenic plants and immunoblot analyses using protoplasts suggested cell wall localization for EARLI1 proteins. Immunoblot analyses showed that EARLI1 proteins form higher order complexes in plants, and that the PRD is a soluble and the 8CM an insoluble protein domain. We propose that EARLI1 proteins have a bimodular architecture in which the PRD may interact with the cell wall and the 8CM domain with the plasma membrane to protect the cells during freezing stress.     

Developmental and Hormonal Regulation of Genes Coding for Proline-Rich Proteins in Female Inflorescences and Kernels of Maize

The pattern of expression of two genes coding for proteins rich in proline, HyPRP (hybrid proline-rich protein) and HRGP (hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein), has been studied in maize (Zea mays) embryos by RNA analysis and in situ hybridization. mRNA accumulation is high during the first 20 d after pollination, and disappears in the maturation stages of embryogenesis. The two genes are also expressed during the development of the pistillate spikelet and during the first stages of embryo development in adjacent but different tissues. HyPRP mRNA accumulates mainly in the scutellum and HRGP mRNA mainly in the embryo axis and the suspensor. The two genes appear to be under the control of different regulatory pathways during embryogenesis. We show that HyPRP is repressed by abscisic acid and stress treatments, with the exception of cold treatment. In contrast, HRGP is affected positively by specific stress treatments.     

A gene encoding a protein with a proline-rich domain (MtPPRD1), revealed by suppressive subtractive hybridization (SSH), is specifically expressed in the Medicago truncatula embryo axis during germination

A gene MtPPRD1, encoding a protein of 132 amino acids containing a proline-rich domain (PRD), has been revealed by suppressive subtractive hybridization (SSH) with two mRNA populations of embryo axes harvested immediately before and after radicle emergence. Although at the protein level MtPPRD1 showed low homology with plant lipid transfer proteins (LTPs), it did exhibit the eight cysteine residues conserved in all plant LTPs, a characteristic signature that allows the formation of a hydrophobic cavity adapted for loading hydrophobic molecules. Expression studies of MtPPRD1 have been carried out by quantitative real time RT-PCR throughout germination and post-germination processes in control seeds and seeds in which germination was delayed by abscisic acid (ABA) or the glutamine synthetase inhibitor methionine sulphoximine (MSX) treatments. The results showed that MtPPRD1 expression is developmentally regulated, induced in the embryo axis immediately before radicle emergence, reaches its maximum expression and declines during the early post-germination phase. Organ specificity studies showed that, except for a low and probably constitutive expression in roots, MtPPRD1 is specifically expressed in the embryo axis. Based on both experimental and in silico studies several putative roles are proposed for MtPPRD1 in Medicago truncatula, this protein can intervene (i) as an LTP in membrane biogenesis and regulation of the intracellular fatty acid pool by binding and transferring fatty acids and phospholipids between membranes, (ii) in the control of a developmental process specific to late germination and to early phases of post-germination, and (iii) and/or pathogen defence.