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[Current concepts on the pathogenicity of phytopathogenic bacteria]
1Laboratoire de biologie moléculaire des interactions plantes-micro-organismes, Inra-CNRS, BP 27, 31326 Castanet Tolosan, France. boucher@toulouse.inra.fr
Comptes Rendus De L'Academie Des Sciences. Serie III, Sciences De La Vie
|September 26, 2001
Summary
Molecular genetics reveals bacterial plant pathogens use sophisticated protein secretion systems to colonize plants and cause disease. These systems, including type II and type IV secretion, are conserved across plant and animal pathogens, offering new disease control strategies.
Area of Science:
- Bacteriology
- Molecular Biology
- Plant Pathology
Context:
- Early 20th-century studies identified toxins and enzymes as key pathogenicity factors.
- Modern molecular genetics has identified numerous genes essential for bacterial host colonization and symptom development.
- Bacterial attachment to plant cells is crucial for efficient transformation and disease induction.
Purpose:
- To elucidate the molecular determinants enabling bacteria to act as plant pathogens.
- To understand the evolution and conservation of pathogenicity mechanisms in bacteria.
- To identify novel targets for controlling plant diseases.
Summary:
- Pathogenicity determinants have evolved from simple toxins and enzymes to complex protein secretion systems.
- Type II secretion machinery (hrp genes) and type IV secretion machinery are critical for translocating effector proteins into host cells.
- Protein trafficking into host cells represents a conserved strategy in both plant and animal pathogens, enabling subtle manipulation of host biology.
Impact:
- Reveals conserved pathogenicity strategies between plant and animal pathogens.
- Shifts the understanding of pathogenicity from external attack to internal manipulation via effector proteins.
- Opens new avenues for developing innovative disease control strategies by targeting effector proteins and secretion systems.