AtVPS41-mediated endocytic pathway is essential for pollen tube–stigma interaction inArabidopsis

Abstract

In flowering plants, extensive male–female interactions are required for successful fertilization in which various signaling cascades are involved. Prevacuolar compartments (PVC) and vacuoles are two types of subcellular compartments that terminate signal transduction by sequestrating signaling molecules in yeast and mammalian cells; however, the manner in which they might be involved in male–female interactions in plants is unknown. In this study, we identified Arabidopsisthaliana vacuolar protein sorting 41 (AtVPS41), encoded by a single-copy gene with sequence similarity to yeast Vps41p, as a new factor controlling pollen tube–stigma interaction. Loss of AtVPS41 function disrupted penetration of pollen tubes into the transmitting tissue and thus led to failed male transmission. In the pollen tubes, AtVPS41 protein is associated with PVCs and the tonoplast. We demonstrate that AtVPS41 is required for the late stage of the endocytic pathway (i.e., endomembrane trafficking from PVCs to vacuoles) because internalization of cell-surface molecules was normal in the vps41-deficient pollen tubes, whereas PVC-to-vacuole trafficking was impaired. We further show that the CHCR domain is required for subcellular localization and biological functioning of AtVPS41. These results indicate that the AtVPS41-mediated late stage of the endocytic pathway is essential for pollen tube–stigma interaction in Arabidopsis.

A subunit of the HOPS endocytic tethering complex, FgVps41, is important for fungal development and plant infection in Fusarium graminearum

“…Endosomes and vacuoles are two important subcellular compartments for vesicle trafficking and endocytic pathway, which is involved in signal transmission by identifying related signalling molecules (Hao et al ., ). Mutation of the endocytic pathway related components often showed defects in vacuole fusion and vesicle trafficking in different phytopathogens.…”

“…Signalling pathway responding to both external and internal signals is essential for implementation of biological functions. After the signal is perceived, signalling activities is usually mediated by vesicle trafficking to be attenuated and terminated, which ensures the temporal and spatial control of signalling activities (Hao et al, 2016). In animal cells, the attenuation and termination of signalling activity are important regulatory mechanisms of the signalling pathway (Jekely et al, 2005;Lemmon and Schlessinger, 2010).…”

Arabinogalactan Proteins as Interactors along the Crosstalk between the Pollen Tube and the Female Tissues

“…An A. thaliana Vacuolar Protein Sorting 41 (AtVPS41) was very recently identified as being a new factor controlling pollen tube-stigma interaction (Hao et al, 2016). Atvps41 pollen tubes fail to penetrate the female transmitting tract due to an impairment in the endocytic pathway.…”

The SNARE protein FolVam7 mediates intracellular trafficking to regulate conidiogenesis and pathogenicity in Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici

“…Endocytosis is a biological process in which extracellular substances are internalized in vesicles by invagination of the plasma membrane (Mellman, 1996;Qi et al, 2016). In eukaryotic organisms, endocytosis mediates transportation of proteins and lipids, absorption of nutrients, maintenance of cell polarity and cellular signal transduction (Steinberg and Fuchs, 2004;Higuchi et al, 2009;Hao et al, 2016). In the pathogenic fungus M. oryzae, MoSec22 and MoSyn8 are crucial for hyphal growth and pathogenesis by regulating vesicle trafficking and endocytosis Qi et al, 2016).…”