LysM-containing proteins function in the resistance of Litopenaeus vannamei against Vibrio parahaemolyticus infection

Lysin motif (LysM) is a functional domain that can bind to peptidoglycans, chitin and their derivatives. The LysM-containing proteins participate in multiple biological processes, such as the hydrolysis of bacterial cell walls and the perception of PAMPs in plants and high animals. In the present study, two genes encoding LysM-containing proteins, designated as LvLysM1 and LvLysM2, were identified in the Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei, and their functions during Vibrio infection were analyzed. The open-reading frame (ORF) of LvLysM1 was 795 bp, only encoding a LysM domain at the N-terminal region. The ORF of LvLysM2 was 834 bp, encoding a LysM domain at the central region and a transmembrane region at the C-terminal region. Both LvLysM1 and LvLysM2 were widely transcribed in all tested shrimp tissues. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) showed that the recombinant protein of LvLysM2 could bind to different bacterial polysaccharides, while LvLysM1 showed no direct binding activity. The transcripts of LvLysMs in gills increased significantly after infection with Vibrio parahaemolyticus. When LvLysM1 or LvLysM2 was knocked down by dsRNA, the mortality of shrimp was significantly increased after infection with Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Interestingly, some SNPs existed in these two genes were apparently correlated with the VpAHPND resistance of shrimp. These results suggested that LvLysM1 and LvLysM2 might contribute to the disease resistance of shrimp. The data provide new knowledge about the function of LysM-containing proteins in shrimp and potential genetic markers for disease resistance breeding.

Interplay of plant glycan hydrolases and LysM proteins in plant-Bacteria interactions

Plants are always found together with bacteria and other microbes. Although plants can be attacked by phytopathogenic bacteria, they are more often engaged in neutral or mutualistic bacterial interactions. In the soil, plants associate with rhizobia or other plant growth promoting rhizosphere bacteria; above ground, bacteria colonise plants as epi- and endophytes. For mounting appropriate responses, such as permitting colonisation by beneficial symbionts while at the same time fending off pathogenic invaders, plants need to distinguish between the "good" and the "bad". Plants make use of proteins containing the lysin motif (LysM) for perception of N-acetylglucosamine containing carbohydrate structures, such as chitooligosaccharides functioning as symbiotic nodulation factors or bacterial peptidoglycan. Moreover, plant hydrolytic enzymes of the chitinase family, which are able to cleave bacterial peptidoglycan or chitooligosaccharides, are essential for cellular signalling induced by rhizobial nodulation factors during symbiosis as well as bacterial peptidoglycan during pathogenesis. Hence, LysM receptors seem to work in concert with hydrolytic enzymes that fine-tune ligand availability to either allow symbiotic interactions or trigger plant immunity.

The lysin motif-containing proteins, Lyp1, Lyk7 and LysMe3, play important roles in chitin perception and defense against Verticillium dahliae in cotton

BACKGROUND

Lysin motif (LysM)-containing proteins are important pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) in plants, which function in the perception of microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs) and in the defense against pathogenic attack. To date, the LysM genes have not been systematically analyzed in cotton or effectively utilized for disease resistance.

RESULTS

Here, we identified 29, 30, 60, and 56 LysM genes in the four sequenced cotton species, diploid Gossypium raimondii, diploid G. arboreum, tetraploid G. hirsutum acc. TM-1, and G. barbadense acc. 3-79, respectively. These LysM genes were classified into four groups with different structural characteristics and a variety of expression patterns in different organs and tissues when induced by chitin or Verticillium dahliae. We further characterized three genes, Lyp1, Lyk7 and LysMe3, which showed significant increase in expression in response to chitin signals, V. dahliae challenge and several stress-related signaling compounds. Lyp1, Lyk7 and LysMe3 proteins were localized to the plasma membrane, and silencing of their expression in cotton drastically impaired salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, and reactive oxygen species generation, impaired defense gene activation, and compromised resistance to V. dahliae.

CONCLUSION

Our results indicate that Lyp1, Lyk7, and LysMe3 are important PRRs that function in the recognition of chitin signals to activate the downstream defense processes and induce cotton defense mechanisms against V. dahliae.

Involvement of a LysM and putative peptidoglycan-binding domain-containing protein in the antibacterial immune response of kuruma shrimp Marsupenaeus japonicus

Lysin motif (LysM) is a peptidoglycan and chitin-binding motif with multiple functions in bacteria, plants, and animals. In this study, a novel LysM and putative peptidoglycan-binding domain-containing protein was cloned from kuruma shrimp (Marsupenaeus japonicus) and named as MjLPBP. The cDNA of MjLPBP contained 1010 nucleotides with an open reading frame of 834 nucleotides encoding a protein of 277 amino acid residues. The deduced protein contained a Lysin motif and a transmembrane region, with a calculated molecular mass of 31.54 kDa and isoelectric point of 8.61. MjLPBP was ubiquitously distributed in different tissues of shrimp at the mRNA level. Time course expression assay showed that MjLPBP was upregulated in hemocytes of shrimp challenged with Vibrio anguillarum or Staphylococcus aureus. MjLPBP was also upregulated in hepatopancreas after white spot syndrome virus and bacteria challenge. The recombinant protein of MjLPBP could bind to some Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and yeast. Further study found that rMjLPBP bound to bacterial cell wall components, including peptidoglycans, lipoteichoic acid, lipopolysaccharide, and chitin. The induction of several antimicrobial peptide genes and phagocytosis-related gene, such as anti-lipopolysaccharide factors and myosin, was depressed after knockdown of MjLPBP. MjLPBP could facilitate V. anguillarum clearance in vivo. All the results indicated that MjLPBP might play an important role in the innate immunity of shrimp.