title: Alternative splicing of the receptor-like kinase Nt-Sd-RLK in tobacco cells responding to lipopolysaccharides: suggestive of a role in pathogen surveillance and perception?
abstract: Nt-Sd-RLK encodes an S-domain lectin receptor-like kinase that is induced in response to microbe-associated molecular pattern molecules (MAMPs) such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS). In this study, we investigated the alternative splicing of Nt-Sd-RLK in response to LPS stimulation. Our data indicate that in nonstimulated cells, a shorter transcript of Nt-Sd-RLK is generated and that in response to LPS, alternative splicing produces the full-length transcript. We propose that the extracellular domain of Nt-Sd-RLK encoded by the shorter transcript functions in pathogen surveillance. Once this domain binds LPS, alternative splicing generates the kinase domain-containing Nt-Sd-RLK that activates downstream signalling leading to a defence response. Thus, our findings suggest that plant defence signalling may be regulated through the alternative splicing of receptor-like kinases involved in pathogen recognition.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, South Africa.
authors.forename: Natasha M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Sanabria
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, South Africa. idubery@uj.ac.za.
authors.forename: Ian A
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9079-4769
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Dubery
mesh_terms: D017398:Alternative Splicing / Q000187:drug effects; D060467:Disease Resistance; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / Q000187:drug effects; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D011494:Protein Kinases
keywords: alternative processing/splicing; innate immunity; lectin-RLK; plant defence; receptor-like kinases; signal perception