Direct and Indirect Targeting of PP2A by Conserved Bacterial Type-III Effector Proteins

PLoS Pathog. 2016 May 18;12(5):e1005609. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1005609. eCollection 2016 May.

Abstract

Bacterial AvrE-family Type-III effector proteins (T3Es) contribute significantly to the virulence of plant-pathogenic species of Pseudomonas, Pantoea, Ralstonia, Erwinia, Dickeya and Pectobacterium, with hosts ranging from monocots to dicots. However, the mode of action of AvrE-family T3Es remains enigmatic, due in large part to their toxicity when expressed in plant or yeast cells. To search for targets of WtsE, an AvrE-family T3E from the maize pathogen Pantoea stewartii subsp. stewartii, we employed a yeast-two-hybrid screen with non-lethal fragments of WtsE and a synthetic genetic array with full-length WtsE. Together these screens indicate that WtsE targets maize protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) heterotrimeric enzyme complexes via direct interaction with B' regulatory subunits. AvrE1, another AvrE-family T3E from Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato strain DC3000 (Pto DC3000), associates with specific PP2A B' subunit proteins from its susceptible host Arabidopsis that are homologous to the maize B' subunits shown to interact with WtsE. Additionally, AvrE1 was observed to associate with the WtsE-interacting maize proteins, indicating that PP2A B' subunits are likely conserved targets of AvrE-family T3Es. Notably, the ability of AvrE1 to promote bacterial growth and/or suppress callose deposition was compromised in Arabidopsis plants with mutations of PP2A genes. Also, chemical inhibition of PP2A activity blocked the virulence activity of both WtsE and AvrE1 in planta. The function of HopM1, a Pto DC3000 T3E that is functionally redundant to AvrE1, was also impaired in specific PP2A mutant lines, although no direct interaction with B' subunits was observed. These results indicate that sub-component specific PP2A complexes are targeted by bacterial T3Es, including direct targeting by members of the widely conserved AvrE-family.

MeSH terms

  • Arabidopsis / microbiology
  • Bacterial Proteins / metabolism*
  • Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / immunology
  • Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / metabolism*
  • Immunoprecipitation
  • Nicotiana / microbiology
  • Pantoea / metabolism
  • Plant Diseases / microbiology
  • Protein Phosphatase 2 / metabolism*
  • Pseudomonas syringae / metabolism
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Solanum lycopersicum / microbiology
  • Two-Hybrid System Techniques
  • Type III Secretion Systems
  • Virulence / physiology*
  • Zea mays / microbiology

Substances

  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Type III Secretion Systems
  • Protein Phosphatase 2

Grants and funding

This work was supported by grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (grant no. 2008–35319–04506 to DM and DLC and grant no. 2016-67013-24727 to DM), the Korean Rural Development Administration Next-Generation BioGreen Program, System and Synthetic Agro-Biotech Center (grant nos. PJ009088 and PJ011091 to MGK and DM), and grants from the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center of The Ohio State University to LJ and to DM. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.