title: A two-domain protein triggers heat shock pathway and necrosis pathway both in model plant and nematode.
abstract: The entomopathogen Bacillus thuringiensis is equipped with multiple virulent factors. The genome sequence of B. thuringiensis YBT1520 revealed the presence of a two-domain protein named Nel which is composed of a necrosis-inducing phytophthora protein 1-like domain found in phytopathogens and a ricin B-like lectin domain. The merging of two distantly related domains is relatively rare. Nel induced necrosis and pathogen-triggered immunity (PTI) on model plants. The Nel also exhibited inhibition activity to nematode. Microscopic observation showed that the toxicity of Nel to nematodes targets the intestine. Quantitative proteomics revealed that Nel stimulated the host defence. The Nel thus possesses dual roles, as both toxin and elicitor. Remarkably, the Nel protein triggered a similar response, induction of the heat shock pathway and the necrosis pathway, in both model plants and nematodes. The unusual ability of Nel to function across kingdom suggests a highly conserved mechanism in eukaryotes that predates the divergence of plants and animal. It is also speculated that the two-domain protein is the result of horizontal gene transfer (HGT) between phytopathogens and entomopathogens. Our results provide an example that HGT occurs between members of different species or even genera with lower frequency are particularly important for evolution of new bacterial pathogen lineages with new virulence. Bacillus thuringiensis occupies the same ecological niches, plant and soil, as phytopathogens, providing the opportunity for gene exchange.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.|College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Lifang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ruan
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Huihui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Ge
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Donghai
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Hua
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Jinshui
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Xixi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Haoquan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Seng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Ce
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Geng
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000382:microbiology*; D001413:Bacillus thuringiensis / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology*; D022761:Gene Transfer, Horizontal; D018869:Heat-Shock Response / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D008756:Methylgalactosides / Q000494:pharmacology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary / Q000235:genetics; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000382:microbiology*; D014774:Virulence / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D008756:Methylgalactosides