Gene transfer from parasitic to host plants

Mower, Jeffrey P.; Stefanović, Saša; Young, Gregory J.; Palmer, Jeffrey D.

doi:10.1038/432165b

Cited by 214 publications

(148 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…For chromosomes 8, 12, 14, and 16, the PCR program of 94°C for 5 min; 37 cycles of 94°C for 20 s, 54°C for 20 s, 72°C for 1 min; 72°C for 10 min was used. The PCR products were ran on a 2.5% (wt/vol) TAE agarose gel for chromosomes 8,14,[16][17][18], and 20 and on a 5% (wt/vol) MetaPhor agarose (Lonza) gel for chromosomes 1-7, 9-13, 15, 19, and 21-24.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Cell-to-cell movement of mitochondria in plants

Gurdon

Sváb

Feng

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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We report cell-to-cell movement of mitochondria through a graft junction. Mitochondrial movement was discovered in an experiment designed to select for chloroplast transfer from Nicotiana sylvestris into Nicotiana tabacum cells. The alloplasmic N. tabacum line we used carries Nicotiana undulata cytoplasmic genomes, and its flowers are male sterile due to the foreign mitochondrial genome. Thus, rare mitochondrial DNA transfer from N. sylvestris to N. tabacum could be recognized by restoration of fertile flower anatomy. Analyses of the mitochondrial genomes revealed extensive recombination, tentatively linking male sterility to orf293, a mitochondrial gene causing homeotic conversion of anthers into petals. Demonstrating cell-to-cell movement of mitochondria reconstructs the evolutionary process of horizontal mitochondrial DNA transfer and enables modification of the mitochondrial genome by DNA transmitted from a sexually incompatible species. Conversion of anthers into petals is a visual marker that can be useful for mitochondrial transformation.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These findings imply that mechanisms exist for DNA delivery between unrelated species. Parasitic plants are frequent participants in HGT, either as donors (8,9) or recipients (5) of foreign DNA; the DNA exchange between the host and parasite is probably facilitated by the physical connection (for review, see ref. 3).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Cell-to-cell movement of mitochondria in plants

Gurdon

Sváb

Feng

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…A second apparent concentration of horizontally acquired sequences in plant genomes is associated with parasitic plants, where both mitochondrial (14,(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23) and nuclear horizontal transfers (24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29) have been identified. Repeated horizontal acquisitions of mitochondrial atpI by parasitic flowering plants occurred in four extreme parasite lineages where the parasite lives inside the host for much of its lifespan (14).…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Horizontal gene transfer is more frequent with increased heterotrophy and contributes to parasite adaptation

Yang

Zhang

Wafula

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is the transfer of genetic material across species boundaries and has been a driving force in prokaryotic evolution. HGT involving eukaryotes appears to be much less frequent, and the functional implications of HGT in eukaryotes are poorly understood. We test the hypothesis that parasitic plants, because of their intimate feeding contacts with host plant tissues, are especially prone to horizontal gene acquisition. We sought evidence of HGTs in transcriptomes of three parasitic members of Orobanchaceae, a plant family containing species spanning the full spectrum of parasitic capabilities, plus the free-living Lindenbergia. Following initial phylogenetic detection and an extensive validation procedure, 52 highconfidence horizontal transfer events were detected, often from lineages of known host plants and with an increasing number of HGT events in species with the greatest parasitic dependence. Analyses of intron sequences in putative donor and recipient lineages provide evidence for integration of genomic fragments far more often than retro-processed RNA sequences. Purifying selection predominates in functionally transferred sequences, with a small fraction of adaptively evolving sites. HGT-acquired genes are preferentially expressed in the haustorium-the organ of parasitic plants-and are strongly biased in predicted gene functions, suggesting that expression products of horizontally acquired genes are contributing to the unique adaptive feeding structure of parasitic plants.

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“…Macromolecules are naturally transported into the parasite from the host plant, and earlier reports have implicated haustorial connections in protein and RNA translocation between host and parasite (Mower et al, 2004;Roney et al, 2007;David-Schwartz et al, 2008). RNA movement between host and parasite has even been implicated in horizontal gene transfer between the host and parasite genomes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interspecific RNA Interference of SHOOT MERISTEMLESS-Like Disrupts Cuscuta pentagona Plant Parasitism

et al. 2012

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Infection of crop species by parasitic plants is a major agricultural hindrance resulting in substantial crop losses worldwide. Parasitic plants establish vascular connections with the host plant via structures termed haustoria, which allow acquisition of water and nutrients, often to the detriment of the infected host. Despite the agricultural impact of parasitic plants, the molecular and developmental processes by which host/parasitic interactions are established are not well understood. Here, we examine the development and subsequent establishment of haustorial connections by the parasite dodder (Cuscuta pentagona) on tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) plants. Formation of haustoria in dodder is accompanied by upregulation of dodder KNOTTED-like homeobox transcription factors, including SHOOT MERISTEMLESS-like (STM). We demonstrate interspecific silencing of a STM gene in dodder driven by a vascular-specific promoter in transgenic host plants and find that this silencing disrupts dodder growth. The reduced efficacy of dodder infection on STM RNA interference transgenics results from defects in haustorial connection, development, and establishment. Identification of transgene-specific small RNAs in the parasite, coupled with reduced parasite fecundity and increased growth of the infected host, demonstrates the efficacy of interspecific small RNA-mediated silencing of parasite genes. This technology has the potential to be an effective method of biological control of plant parasite infection.

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Gene transfer from parasitic to host plants

Cited by 214 publications

References 10 publications

Cell-to-cell movement of mitochondria in plants

Cell-to-cell movement of mitochondria in plants

Horizontal gene transfer is more frequent with increased heterotrophy and contributes to parasite adaptation

Interspecific RNA Interference of SHOOT MERISTEMLESS-Like Disrupts Cuscuta pentagona Plant Parasitism

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