Geminivirus-encoded TrAP suppressor inhibits the histone methyltransferase SUVH4/KYP to counter host defense.
Transcriptional gene silencing (TGS) can serve as an innate immunity against invading DNA viruses throughout Eukaryotes. Geminivirus code for TrAP protein to suppress the TGS pathway. Here, we identified an Arabidopsis H3K9me2 histone methyltransferase, Su(var)3-9 homolog 4/Kryptonite (SUVH4/KYP), as a bona fide cellular target of TrAP. TrAP interacts with the catalytic domain of KYP and inhibits its activity in vitro. TrAP elicits developmental anomalies phenocopying several TGS mutants, reduces the repressive H3K9me2 mark and CHH DNA methylation, and reactivates numerous endogenous KYP-repressed loci in vivo. Moreover, KYP binds to the viral chromatin and controls its methylation to combat virus infection. Notably, kyp mutants support systemic infection of TrAP-deficient Geminivirus. We conclude that TrAP attenuates the TGS of the viral chromatin by inhibiting KYP activity to evade host surveillance. These findings provide new insight on the molecular arms race between host antiviral defense and virus counter defense at an epigenetic level.
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.
Claudia
C
Castillo-González
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Xiuying
X
Liu
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.|Yunnan Academy of Tobacco Agricultural Sciences, Yunnan, China.
Changjun
C
Huang
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|College of Agronomy, Heilongjiang Bayi Agricultural University, Daqing, China.
Changjiang
C
Zhao
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.
Zeyang
Z
Ma
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
Tao
T
Hu
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute of Plant Protection, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing, China.
Feng
F
Sun
Institute of Plant Protection, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing, China.
Yijun
Y
Zhou
Biotechnology Institute, College of Agriculture & Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Zhejiang, China.
Xueping
X
Zhou
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Xiu-Jie
XJ
Wang
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.|Institute for Plant Genomics and Biotechnology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States.
Xiuren
X
Zhang
D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D017791:Geminiviridae / Q000502:physiology*; D011495:Histone-Lysine N-Methyltransferase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions; D057131:Immune Evasion; D011485:Protein Binding; D025941:Protein Interaction Mapping; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D014764:Viral Proteins; D011495:Histone-Lysine N-Methyltransferase; C471228:SUVH4 protein, Arabidopsis
TrAP/AL2/AC2; arabidopsis; chromosomes; epigenetic silencing; geminivirus; genes; histone methyltransferase; host–virus interaction; plant biology; viral suppression; viruses