title: Calcium signaling in pathogenic and beneficial plant microbe interactions: what can we learn from the interaction between Piriformospora indica and Arabidopsis thaliana.
abstract: Elevation of intracellular calcium levels in a plant cell is an early signaling event in many mutualistic and pathogenic plant/microbe interactions. In pathogenic plant/fungus interactions, receptor-mediated cytoplasmic calcium elevations induce defense genes via the activation of ion fluxes at the plasma membrane, an oxidative burst and MAPK activation. Mycorrhizal and beneficial endophytic plant/fungus interactions result in a better plant performance through sequencial cytoplasmic and nuclear calcium elevations. The specificity of the calcium responses depends on the calcium signature, its amplitude, duration, frequency and location, a selective activation of calcium channels in the diverse cellular membranes and the stimulation of calcium-dependent signaling components. Arabidopsis contains more than 100 genes for calcium-binding proteins and channels and the response to pathogens and beneficial fungi relies on a highly specific activation of individual members of these protein families. Genetic tools are required to understand this complex response patterns and the cross talks between the individual calcium-dependent signaling pathways. The beneficial interaction of Arabidopsis with the growth-promoting endophyte Piriformospora indica provides a nice model system to unravel signaling events leading to mutualistic or pathogenic plant/fungus interactions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Jyothilakshmi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vadassery
authors.forename: Ralf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Oelmüller
mesh_terms: D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D001487:Basidiomycota / Q000502:physiology*; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000378:metabolism; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D002135:Calcium-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D007887:Fabaceae / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D038821:Mycorrhizae / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000235:genetics; D020239:Receptor Cross-Talk / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D015220:Calcium Channels; D002135:Calcium-Binding Proteins; D002118:Calcium