Arabidopsis formin AtFH6 Is a plasma membrane-associated protein upregulated in giant cells induced by parasitic nematodes

• Published in: The Plant cell Vol. 16; no. 9; pp. 2529 - 2540
• Main Authors: Favery, B, Chelysheva, L.A, Lebris, M, Jammes, F, Marmague, A, Almeida-Engler, J. de, Lecomte, P, Vaury, C, Arkowitz, R.A, Abad, P
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Society of Plant Biologists 01.09.2004; American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB)
• Subjects: actin nucleating proteins; Actins; Actins - metabolism; Amino Acid Sequence; Amino Acid Sequence - genetics; Animals; Arabidopsis; Arabidopsis - genetics; Arabidopsis - metabolism; Arabidopsis - parasitology; Arabidopsis Proteins; Arabidopsis Proteins - genetics; Arabidopsis Proteins - isolation & purification; Arabidopsis Proteins - metabolism; Arabidopsis thaliana; Base Sequence; Base Sequence - genetics; Cell growth; Cell Membrane; Cell Membrane - genetics; Cell Membrane - metabolism; Cell membranes; Cell Wall; Cell Wall - genetics; Cell Wall - metabolism; CSQ2 gene; DNA, Complementary; DNA, Complementary - analysis; DNA, Complementary - genetics; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant - genetics; gene induction; genes; Giant cells; Glucuronidase; Glucuronidase - metabolism; Host-Parasite Interactions - genetics; Host-Parasite Relations; Life Sciences; Meloidogyne; Meloidogyne incognita; Membrane Proteins; Membrane Proteins - genetics; Membrane Proteins - isolation & purification; Membrane Proteins - metabolism; Microfilament Proteins; Microfilament Proteins - genetics; Microfilament Proteins - isolation & purification; Microfilament Proteins - metabolism; Microfilaments; Molecular Sequence Data; Mutation; Mutation - genetics; Nematode Infections; Nematode Infections - genetics; Nematode Infections - metabolism; Nematodes; nucleotide sequences; Phylogeny; Plant cells; Plant roots; Plants; plasma membrane; Proteins; root-knot nematodes; roots; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - genetics; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - metabolism; Transport Vesicles; Transport Vesicles - genetics; Transport Vesicles - metabolism; Tylenchoidea; Tylenchoidea - metabolism; Up-Regulation; Up-Regulation - genetics; Vegetal Biology; Yeasts; IMMUNOLOCALIZATION; HYPERTROPHISM; CYTOSKELETON; CELL DIVISION; CELL WALL; CELL FRACTIONATION; SCREENING METHOD; MORPHOGENESE; MELOIDOGYNE; CELL GROWTH; SACCHAROMYCES-CEREVISIAE; MORPHOGENESIS; CYTOKINESIS
• ISSN: 1040-4651; 1532-298X
• DOI: 10.1105/tpc.104.024372

Plant-parasitic nematodes Meloidogyne spp induce an elaborate permanent feeding site characterized by the redifferentiation of root cells into multinucleate and hypertrophied giant cells. We have isolated by a promoter trap strategy an Arabidopsis thaliana formin gene, AtFH6, which is upregulated during giant cell formation. Formins are actin-nucleating proteins that stimulate de novo polymerization of actin filaments. We show here that three type-I formins were upregulated in giant cells and that the AtFH6 protein was anchored to the plasma membrane and uniformly distributed. Suppression of the budding defect of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae bni1delta bnr1delta mutant showed that AtFH6 regulates polarized growth by controlling the assembly of actin cables. Our results suggest that AtFH6 might be involved in the isotropic growth of hypertrophied feeding cells via the reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton. The actin cables would serve as tracks for vesicle trafficking needed for extensive plasma membrane and cell wall biogenesis. Therefore, determining how plant parasitic nematodes modify root cells into giant cells represents an attractive system to identify genes that regulate cell growth and morphogenesis.