SPP 1212:  Microbial Reprogramming of Plant Cell Development

• Subject Area: Biology
• Term: from 2007 to 2014
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 14250334

Microbial pathogens rob their hosts of nutrients and can kill plants, while symbiotic fungi and bacteria provide phosphate and nitrogen and improve plant health. Despite the differences there are numerous parallels between these two types of interaction. Both microbial pathogens and symbionts reprogramme plant cellular development. This Priority Programme aims to uncover the molecular switches that both cause and restrict disease in one system and lead to symbiosis in another. The programme will channel activities from different laboratories in a joint research strategy that exploits the plant model Arabidopsis. For research on symbiosis, the Priority Programme will focus exclusively on the model legumes Lotus and Medicago. The purpose of this restriction is to maximise synergy between projects and allow the establishment of centrally managed research pipelines.
These include, firstly, the screening of chemical libraries that comprise small synthetic and natural molecules of microbial origin for effectors in various bioassays for specific plant responses; secondly, a comprehensive description of patho-phenotypes of Arabidopsis mutants impaired in disease resistance or disease development; and thirdly, life-cell and non-invasive imaging technologies to describe the subcellular spatio-temporal dynamics of key molecules accompanying the processes of recognition, defence and infection. This involves the analysis and visualisation of protein-protein interactions in planta.
The Priority Programme invites applications with a focus on:
(1) the molecular dissection of plant developmental responses to microbes;
(2) the elucidation of microbial strategies used in reprogramming plant cellular development. This includes the identification of microbial effector molecules, their modes of action and how these intersect with the host defence machinery;
(3) the improvement of transformation efficiency of obligate biotrophic fungi for reverse genetic approaches, as this group of microorganisms possesses the most sophisticated infection strategies but cannot yet be manipulated;
(4) computational modelling of microbial infection of plants at the cellular level using experimental data in combination with the mining of completely sequenced microbial and plant genomes.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• International Connection: Switzerland, United Kingdom

Projects

• Analysis of secreted protein effectors from the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus G. intraradices (Applicant Requena, Natalia )
• Analysis of the PUB22 ubiquitin ligase mediated regulation of exocyst-dependent exocytosis during plant immune responses (Applicant Trujillo Linke, Marco )
• Calcium signalling induced by MAMPs (Microbe-associated molecular patterns) in Arabidopis thaliana (Applicant Lee, Justin )
• Cell and tissue specific monitoring of jasmonates in plant interactions with pathogens and symbionts (Applicant Hause, Bettina )
• Cellular dynamics between PAMP receptors and pathogen-derived effectors (Applicant Robatzek, Silke )
• Characterization of mutants impaired in Piriformospora indica-induced cytoplasmic calcium elevation in Arabidopsis roots (Applicant Oelmüller, Ralf )
• Chemical signaling in mycorrhizal symbiosome development in Lotus japonicus (Applicant Bucher, Marcel )
• FACS-based in planta BiFC screening (Applicant Harter, Klaus )
• Fuctional characterization of secreted effector proteins from Colletotrichum higginsianum (Applicant Parker, Jane E. )
• Function of CDPK activation, localization and interaction with regulatory proteins during the induction of plant defence responses (Applicant Romeis, Tina )
• Functional analysis of Symbiosis Receptor Kinase (SYMRK) mediated signal perception (Applicant Parniske, Martin )
• Functional characterisation of a novel semi-dominant mutant allele of the "Chitin Elicitor Receptor-like Kinase" CERK1 (Applicant Lipka, Volker )
• Functional characterization of Pep1, an Ustilago maydis effector required for plant cell penetration (Applicant Döhlemann, Gunther )
• Functional characterization of the Phytophthora infestans effector Avr2 (Applicant Brunner, Frédéric )
• Identification and molecular characterization of microbe-derived PAMPs and their corresponding perception systems in Arabidopsis (Applicant Nürnberger, Thorsten )
• Mechanisms and functions of SNARE protein-dependent and vesicle-mediated exocytosis in plant immune responses (Applicant Schulze-Lefert, Paul )
• MicroRNA- and transcription factor profiling: analyzing two regulatory steps of plant cell reprogramming in response to arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) colonization (Applicant Krajinski-Barth, Franziska )
• Mining Ser hydrolase activities from the Pseudomonas-Arabidopsis interaction (Applicant van der Hoorn, Renier A.L. )
• Molecular manipulation of Arabidopsis by type III effectors from the bacterial plant pathogens Pseudomonas syringae and Xanthomonas (Applicant Boch, Jens )
• Mutational sceens in Arabidopsis aimed at identifying genes that are required for functionality of the pepper Bs3 restistance gene (Applicant Lahaye, Thomas )
• Nonhost resistance of Arabidopsis thaliana to Phytophthora infestans (Applicant Scheel, Dierk )
• P. indica impairs hubs of innate immunity to gain root accessibility - MAMP signaling and ER integrity (Applicant Schäfer, Patrick )
• Part A) Fungal metabolites as modulators of signalling pathways in plant/pathogen-interactions Part B) Influence of secondary metabolites from Magnaporthe oryzae on plant signalling and development (Applicant Thines, Eckhard )
• RAC/ROP signaling in the interaction of Arabidopsis and barley with powdery mildew fungi (Applicant Hückelhoven, Ralph )
• Regulation of plant resistance to host-adapted biotrophic pathogens (Applicant Parker, Jane E. )
• Regulation of signal transduction during myorrhizal symbiosis (Applicant Ott, Thomas )
• The role of glycolipids at the interface of plant-microbe interactions during nodulation and myorrhiza formation in Lotus japonicus (Applicant Dörmann, Peter )
• Transcriptional control of cellular reprogramming during the symbiotic interaction of Medicago truncatula with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Applicant Küster, Helge )

• Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Martin Parniske