PR Proteins

PR (pathogenesis related) proteins

• PR proteins either very acidic or very basic
• Soluble and reactive
• 14 families
• PR1 = anti-oomycete, anti-fungal
• PR2 = b-1,3-glucanases
• PR3 = chitinases
• PR6 = proteinase inhibitors
• Strongly antifungal & some antibacterial
• Inhibit spore germination
• Strengthen papillae
• Degrade fungal and bacterial cell walls
 Phytoalexins
• Phytoalexins
– Produced by healthy plant cells adjacent to damage by wounding or
pathogens
• Usually low molecular weight, hydrophobic
– Roles mostly unclear
• Pressure on pathogen to detoxify phytoalexin
• Pisatin is a pea phytoalexin: inhibits fungal infections.
– Increased pisatin levels correlated with decreased virulence
– Nectria haematocca, a pea pathogen, inactivates pisatin
• Anti-fungal, some anti-bacterial, anti-nematode
Avr gene/R gene pairs
• Tomato R gene, Pto, encodes a kinase that interacts with P. syringae
pv tomato avrPto protein.

• Rice R gene, Pi-ta, encodes a protein binding protein that directly

interacts with Magnaporthe grisea Avr protein called Avr-Pi-ta (a
protease)
Model for the action of Xa21 (rice blight resistance gene)

Leucine-rich receptor
Transmembrane domain

Kinase

Membrane
Elicitor Signal transduction
(gene expression leading to cell
death)

Cell Wall of plant Cytoplasm of plant

LE 39-31

Signal

Hypersensitive Signal
response transduction
pathway
Signal transduction
pathway Acquired
resistance

Avirulent
pathogen

R-Avr recognition and Systemic acquired

hypersensitive response resistance
 The arms race explained
An avirulence genes mutates so
that it’s product is no longer
recognised by the host
resistance gene.

The host resistance gene mutates
to a version which can detect the
elicitor produced by the new
virulence gene.
It therefore becomes a
virulence gene relative to
the host, and the pathogen
can infect.
In some cases, more than one host gene
contributes to resistance
• Referred to as polygenic or quantitative resistance
• Many genes contribute to resistance
• If function of just one gene is impaired, resistance is not lost
completely
• The genes might encode information for making defense structures or
toxic substances
 Race specific resistance
Complete resistance

Non-race specific resistance

Partial resistance
Multiline of 6 resistance phenotypes