Haudecoeur E, Planamente S, Cirou A, Tannières M, Shelp BJ, Moréra S, Faure D. Proline antagonizes GABA-induced quenching of quorum-sensing in Agrobacterium tumefaciens.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2009;
106:14587-92. [PMID:
19706545 PMCID:
PMC2732848 DOI:
10.1073/pnas.0808005106]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2008] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Plants accumulate free L-proline (Pro) in response to abiotic stresses (drought and salinity) and presence of bacterial pathogens, including the tumor-inducing bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens. However, the function of Pro accumulation in host-pathogen interaction is still unclear. Here, we demonstrated that Pro antagonizes plant GABA-defense in the A. tumefaciens C58-induced tumor by interfering with the import of GABA and consequently the GABA-induced degradation of the bacterial quorum-sensing signal, 3-oxo-octanoylhomoserine lactone. We identified a bacterial receptor Atu2422, which is implicated in the uptake of GABA and Pro, suggesting that Pro acts as a natural antagonist of GABA-signaling. The Atu2422 amino acid sequence contains a Venus flytrap domain that is required for trapping GABA in human GABA(B) receptors. A constructed atu2422 mutant was more virulent than the wild type bacterium; moreover, transgenic plants with a low level of Pro exhibited less severe tumor symptoms than did their wild-type parents, revealing a crucial role for Venus flytrap GABA-receptor and relative abundance of GABA and Pro in host-pathogen interaction.
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