CAREER: Dissecting the cellular pathways and signaling networks orchestrating plant defense responses and their interplay with bacterial virulence factors

职业：剖析细胞通路和信号网络，协调植物防御反应及其与细菌毒力因子的相互作用

基本信息

批准号：
1842970
负责人：
Clemencia Rojas
金额：
$ 90万
依托单位：
University of Arkansas
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Continuing Grant
财政年份：
2019
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2019-05-01 至 2023-10-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1842970&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
CAREER Dissecting cellular pathways signaling

项目摘要

Plant diseases caused by microorganisms have a significant impact on agricultural productivity and, consequently affect the availability of food and fiber for an ever-growing human population. To fight potential pathogens, plants have evolved a complex defense system that detects the presence of potential pathogens and activates multiple responses to restrict pathogen proliferation and prevent tissue damage. Some of these responses include the fortification of the cell wall and the release of molecules with antimicrobial properties. In spite of these and other defense responses diseases still occur because pathogens have also evolved multiple strategies to avoid the plant defense system. The objective of this project is to understand how plants fortify the cell wall and release antimicrobials, and how pathogens interfere with these processes. This knowledge will shed light into new approaches to control plant diseases and reduce their economic and societal impact. The research activities from this project will be used to engage undergraduate students from under-represented minorities, and will provide multi-disciplinary training for postdoctoral fellows and graduate students, who will also be mentors in the outreach activities. The plant endomembrane system is essential for pathogen recognition, and for the deployment of defense responses such as the remodeling of the cell wall and the delivery of proteins with antimicrobial properties to the extracellular milieu (apoplast). Both of these responses require protein secretion, a process that has been investigated but remains poorly understood, especially in plants, as it involves multiple and highly dynamic subcellular compartments, trafficking pathways and protein networks. Because endomembrane-mediated processes are essential in plant-pathogen interactions, these processes are also targets of pathogen's virulence factors, but the strategies that pathogens use have not been well characterized. The main objective of this project is to gain a deeper understanding into secretory pathways and signaling networks regulating plant defense responses and how these processes are targeted by virulence factors from bacterial pathogens. This project will use multi-disciplinary approaches involving live-cell imaging and proteomics technologies in combination with biological, genetic and biochemical assays to identify subcellular compartments, trafficking pathways and protein networks operating in cell wall remodeling and delivery of antimicrobial proteins to the apoplast. The project will also provide a framework to compare how bacterial pathogens with contrasting lifestyles trigger distinct sets of molecular and cellular responses, and how synergistic interactions between virulence factors from adapted bacterial pathogens subvert plant immune responses. This project is jointly funded by the Plant Biotic Interactions Program and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

由微生物引起的植物病害对农业生产力产生重大影响，从而影响不断增长的人口的食物和纤维的供应。为了对抗潜在的病原体，植物进化出了复杂的防御系统，可以检测潜在病原体的存在并激活多种反应以限制病原体增殖并防止组织损伤。其中一些反应包括强化细胞壁和释放具有抗菌特性的分子。尽管有这些和其他防御反应，疾病仍然发生，因为病原体也进化出了多种策略来避开植物防御系统。该项目的目标是了解植物如何强化细胞壁并释放抗菌素，以及病原体如何干扰这些过程。这些知识将揭示控制植物病害并减少其经济和社会影响的新方法。该项目的研究活动将用于吸引代表性不足的少数族裔的本科生，并将为博士后研究员和研究生提供多学科培训，他们也将成为外展活动的导师。植物内膜系统对于病原体识别和防御反应的部署至关重要，例如细胞壁的重塑和将具有抗菌特性的蛋白质输送到细胞外环境（质外体）。这两种反应都需要蛋白质分泌，这一过程已被研究但仍知之甚少，特别是在植物中，因为它涉及多个高度动态的亚细胞区室、运输途径和蛋白质网络。由于内膜介导的过程在植物与病原体相互作用中至关重要，因此这些过程也是病原体毒力因子的目标，但病原体使用的策略尚未得到很好的表征。该项目的主要目标是更深入地了解调节植物防御反应的分泌途径和信号网络，以及细菌病原体的毒力因子如何针对这些过程。该项目将使用涉及活细胞成像和蛋白质组学技术的多学科方法，结合生物、遗传和生化测定来识别在细胞壁重塑和抗菌蛋白向质外体递送中起作用的亚细胞区室、运输途径和蛋白质网络。该项目还将提供一个框架来比较具有对比生活方式的细菌病原体如何触发不同的分子和细胞反应，以及适应细菌病原体的毒力因子之间的协同相互作用如何破坏植物免疫反应。该项目由植物生物相互作用计划和刺激竞争性研究既定计划 (EPSCoR) 联合资助。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。