Evolution of antimicrobial cysteine-rich peptides in plants

Abstract

To defend against diverse groups of pathogens, plants produce cysteine-rich peptides (CRPs) with longlasting broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. We analyzed 240 plant genomes ranging from algae to eudicots and our comparative genomics results revealed that CRPs are widely distributed in plants.Further, we found that CRP genes have been ampli ed through both whole genome and local tandem duplication. Their copy number varied signi cantly across lineages and was associated with the plant ecotype, which may be the result of resistance to changing pathogenic environments. The conserved and lineage-speci c CRP families contribute to diverse antimicrobial activities. Moreover, we investigated the unique bi-domain CRPs that result from unequal crossover events. Our ndings provide a unique evolutionary perspective on CRPs and provide insights into their antimicrobial and symbiosis characteristics. Key MessageWe analyzed the evolutionary pattern of cysteine-rich peptides (CRPs) to infer the relationship between CRP copy number and plant ecotype, and the origin of bi-domains CRPs.

Carboxypeptidase inhibitors from Solanaceae as a new subclass of pathogenesis related peptide aiming biotechnological targets for plant defense

“…Furthermore, the presence of an aspartic acid residue (D) at a consistent position was detected. Similar conservation patterns to that observed in the CPI sequences, including cysteine distance patterns and position conservation, are found in pathogens related proteins and antimicrobial peptides such as cysteine-rich peptides and defensin peptides ( Dias and Franco, 2015 ; Slezina et al, 2021 ; Ma et al, 2023 ). These peptides are known for their role in defense mechanisms and their contribution to the formation of highly stable peptide structures.…”

Applications of tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) in antimicrobial peptides field: Current state and new applications

“…Cysteine-rich AMPs, widely distributed in plants, which form part of the plant defense systems [ 44 ]. Seeds and fruits are particularly valuable sources of diverse AMPs in plants.…”

“…Seeds and fruits are particularly valuable sources of diverse AMPs in plants. Cysteine-rich AMPs exhibit persistent broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, enabling plants to effectively defend against a wide array of pathogens [ 44 , 45 ]. Currently, plant AMPs are primarily classified according to their structure into α-hairpin proteins, defensins, heme-like peptides, desmin-type peptides, lipid transfer proteins, thionin, snake proteins and unclassified cysteine-rich AMP [ 46 , 47 ].…”