Rhizogenic Agrobacterium protein RolB interacts with the TOPLESS repressor proteins to reprogram plant immunity...

Area of Science:

• Plant Pathology
• Molecular Biology
• Plant Biotechnology

Background:

• Rhizogenic Agrobacterium causes hairy root disease (HRD) in Solanaceae and Cucurbitaceae crops.
• Root-inducing (Ri) plasmid T-DNA genes, like root oncogenic locus B (rolB), mediate hairy root formation.
• The precise molecular functions of rol gene proteins remain largely unknown.

Purpose of the Study:

• To elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying RolB's function in hairy root development.
• To identify direct interactors of the RolB oncoprotein in planta.
• To understand how RolB manipulates host processes to facilitate HRD.

Main Methods:

• TurboID-mediated proximity labeling in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) hairy roots.
• Plant bioassays.
• Transcriptomic and DNA-binding site enrichment analyses.

Main Results:

• Identified TOPLESS (TPL) and Novel Interactor of JAZ (NINJA) as direct RolB interactors.
• Demonstrated that RolB can mitigate TPL function.
• Revealed RolB-induced reprogramming of phytohormone signaling, immunity, growth, and development.

Conclusions:

• RolB manipulates host transcription, partly via TPL interaction, to promote hairy root development.
• This study provides key mechanistic insights into the oncoprotein's role in HRD.
• RolB's function extends beyond transcriptional repression, involving host process reprogramming.