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Merfa MV, Fischer ER, de Souza E Silva M, Francisco CS, Della Coletta-Filho H, de Souza AA. Probing the Application of OmpA-Derived Peptides to Disrupt the Acquisition of ' Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus' by Diaphorina citri. Phytopathology 2022; 112:163-172. [PMID: 34818904 DOI: 10.1094/phyto-06-21-0252-fi] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Huanglongbing (HLB) is currently the most devastating disease of citrus worldwide. Both bacteria 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus' (CLas) and 'Candidatus Liberibacter americanus' (CLam) are associated with HLB in Brazil but with a strong prevalence of CLas over CLam. Conventionally, HLB management focuses on controlling the insect vector population (Diaphorina citri; also known as Asian citrus psyllid [ACP]) by spraying insecticides, an approach demonstrated to be mostly ineffective. Thus, development of novel, more efficient HLB control strategies is required. The multifunctional bacterial outer membrane protein OmpA is involved in several molecular processes between bacteria and their hosts and has been suggested as a target for bacterial control. Curiously, OmpA is absent in CLam in comparison with CLas, suggesting a possible role in host interaction. Therefore, in the current study, we have treated ACPs with different OmpA-derived peptides, aiming to evaluate acquisition of CLas by the insect vector. Treatment of psyllids with 5 µM of Pep1, Pep3, Pep5, and Pep6 in artificial diet significantly reduced the acquisition of CLas, whereas increasing the concentration of Pep5 and Pep6 to 50 µM abolished this process. In addition, in planta treatment with 50 µM of Pep6 also significantly decreased the acquisition of CLas, and sweet orange plants stably absorbed and maintained this peptide for as long as 3 months post the final application. Together, our results demonstrate the promising use of OmpA-derived peptides as a novel biotechnological tool to control CLas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Vinícius Merfa
- Centro de Citricultura Sylvio Moreira, Instituto Agronômico-IAC, Cordeirópolis, SP 13490-970, Brazil
| | - Eduarda Regina Fischer
- Centro de Citricultura Sylvio Moreira, Instituto Agronômico-IAC, Cordeirópolis, SP 13490-970, Brazil
| | - Mariana de Souza E Silva
- Centro de Citricultura Sylvio Moreira, Instituto Agronômico-IAC, Cordeirópolis, SP 13490-970, Brazil
| | | | | | - Alessandra Alves de Souza
- Centro de Citricultura Sylvio Moreira, Instituto Agronômico-IAC, Cordeirópolis, SP 13490-970, Brazil
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Picchi SC, de Souza E Silva M, Saldanha LL, Ferreira H, Takita MA, Caldana C, de Souza AA. GC-TOF/MS-based metabolomics analysis to investigate the changes driven by N-Acetylcysteine in the plant-pathogen Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri. Sci Rep 2021; 11:15558. [PMID: 34330957 PMCID: PMC8324833 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-95113-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 07/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) is an antioxidant, anti-adhesive, and antimicrobial compound. Even though there is much information regarding the role of NAC as an antioxidant and anti-adhesive agent, little is known about its antimicrobial activity. In order to assess its mode of action in bacterial cells, we investigated the metabolic responses triggered by NAC at neutral pH. As a model organism, we chose the Gram-negative plant pathogen Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri (X. citri), the causal agent of citrus canker disease, due to the potential use of NAC as a sustainable molecule against phytopathogens dissemination in citrus cultivated areas. In presence of NAC, cell proliferation was affected after 4 h, but damages to the cell membrane were observed only after 24 h. Targeted metabolite profiling analysis using GC-MS/TOF unravelled that NAC seems to be metabolized by the cells affecting cysteine metabolism. Intriguingly, glutamine, a marker for nitrogen status, was not detected among the cells treated with NAC. The absence of glutamine was followed by a decrease in the levels of the majority of the proteinogenic amino acids, suggesting that the reduced availability of amino acids affect protein synthesis and consequently cell proliferation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Cristina Picchi
- Centro de Citricultura "Sylvio Moreira" - Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, Cordeirópolis, São Paulo, 13490-970, Brazil
| | - Mariana de Souza E Silva
- Centro de Citricultura "Sylvio Moreira" - Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, Cordeirópolis, São Paulo, 13490-970, Brazil
| | - Luiz Leonardo Saldanha
- Departamento de Bioquímica e Microbiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Rio Claro, São Paulo, 13506-900, Brazil
| | - Henrique Ferreira
- Departamento de Bioquímica e Microbiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Rio Claro, São Paulo, 13506-900, Brazil
| | - Marco Aurélio Takita
- Centro de Citricultura "Sylvio Moreira" - Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, Cordeirópolis, São Paulo, 13490-970, Brazil
| | - Camila Caldana
- Laboratório Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol - Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais, Campinas, São Paulo, 13083-100, Brazil.,Max-Planck-Institut Für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Wissenschaftspark Golm, Am Mühlenberg 1, 14476, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Alessandra Alves de Souza
- Centro de Citricultura "Sylvio Moreira" - Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, Cordeirópolis, São Paulo, 13490-970, Brazil.
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