10 March 2025
Clement Pellegrin, Anika Damm, Alexis L. Sperling, Beth Molloy, Dio S. Shin, Jonathan Long, Paul Brett, Tochukwu Chisom Iguh, Olaf P. Kranse, Andrea Díaz-Tendero Bravo, Sarah Jane Lynch, Beatrice Senatori, Paulo Vieira, Joffrey Mejias, Anil Kumar, Rick E. Masonbrink, Tom R. Maier, Thomas J. Baum, and Sebastian Eves-van den Akker - PNAS, 2025
Pathogens must precisely tailor their gene expression to cause infection. However, a signaling cascade from host signal to effector production has remained elusive for metazoan pathogens. Here, we show that plants contain molecular signals, termed effectostimulins, that activate the first identified regulator of plant-parasitic nematode effectors. SUGR-1 directly binds effector promoters, and is central to a transcriptional network that activates 58 effector genes. Importantly, we demonstrate that downregulation of sugr-1 inhibits parasitism, underlining SUGR-1 signaling as a valuable target for crop protection and food security. This, in the wider context of nematodes as parasites of humans and other animals, has scope for potentially broader impact: Disrupting effector production could, in principle, be applied to any pathogen that secrets effectors.
Read the entire publicationBy submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: The Crop Science Centre, Lawrence Weaver Rd, Cambridge, CB3 0LE, GB. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact.