Spatially Restricted Immune Responses Allow for Root Meristematic Activity During Bacterial Colonisation

Plants circumscribe microbe-associated molecular pattern (MAMP)-triggered immune responses to weak points of the roots. This spatially restricted immunity was suggested to avoid constitutive responses to rhizosphere microbiota. To demonstrate its relevance, we combined cell-type specific expression...

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Published inbioRxiv
Main Authors Emonet, Aurélia, Zhou, Feng, Jordan Vacheron, Clara Margot Heiman, Valérie Dénervaud Tendon, Ka-Wai, Ma, Schulze-Lefert, Paul, Keel, Christoph, Geldner, Niko
Format Paper
LanguageEnglish
Published Cold Spring Harbor Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press 03.08.2020
Subjects
Commensals
Flagellin
Immune response
Meristems
Microbiota
Plant immunity
Rhizosphere
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Summary:Plants circumscribe microbe-associated molecular pattern (MAMP)-triggered immune responses to weak points of the roots. This spatially restricted immunity was suggested to avoid constitutive responses to rhizosphere microbiota. To demonstrate its relevance, we combined cell-type specific expression of the plant flagellin receptor (FLS2) with fluorescent defence markers and mapped immune competency at cellular resolution. Our analysis distinguishes cell-autonomous and non-cell autonomous responses and reveals lignification to be tissue-independent, contrasting cell-type specific suberisation. Importantly, our analysis divides the non-responsive meristem into a central zone refractory to FLS2 expression, and a cortex that becomes highly sensitised by FLS2 expression, causing meristem collapse upon MAMP exposure. Meristematic epidermal expression generates supercompetent lines that detect native bacterial flagellin and bypass the absence of response to commensals, providing a powerful tool for studying root immunity. Our precise manipulations and read-outs demonstrate incompatibility of meristematic activity and defence and the importance of cell-resolved studies of plant immunity. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest.
DOI:10.1101/2020.08.03.233817