Proteins secreted by root-knot nematodes accumulate in the extracellular compartment during root infection

Root-knot nematodes are biotrophic parasites that invade the root apex of host plants and migrate towards the vascular cylinder where they induce the differentiation of root cells into hypertrophied multinucleated giant cells. Giant cells are part of the permanent feeding site required for nematode development into the adult stage. To date, a repertoire of candidate effectors potentially secreted by the nematode into the plant tissues to promote infection has been identified. However, the precise role of these candidate effectors during root invasion or during giant cell induction and maintenance remains largely unknown. Primarily, the identification of the destination of nematode effectors within plant cell compartment(s) is crucial to decipher their actual functions. We analysed the fine localization in root tissues of five nematode effectors throughout the migratory and sedentary phases of parasitism using an adapted immunocytochemical method that preserves host and pathogen tissues.  We showed that secretion of effectors from the amphids or the oesophageal glands is tightly regulated during the course of infection. The analysed effectors accumulated in the root tissues along the nematode migratory path and along the cell wall of giant cells, showing the apoplasm as an important destination compartment for these effectors during migration and feeding cell formation.