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Publikation

Serra, P.; Carbonell, A.; Navarro, B.; Gago-Zachert, S.; Li, S.; Di Serio, F.; Flores, R.; Symptomatic plant viroid infections in phytopathogenic fungi: A request for a critical reassessment Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 117, 10126-10128, (2020) DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1922249117

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Bücher und Buchkapitel

Flores, R.; Gago-Zachert, S.; Serra, P.; De la Peña, M.; Navarro, B.; Chrysanthemum Chlorotic Mottle Viroid (Hadidi, A., et al., eds.). 331-338, (2017) DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-801498-1.00031-0

Chrysanthemum chlorotic mottle viroid (CChMVd) (398–401 nt) belongs to genus Pelamoviroid, family Avsunviroidae and, like other members of this family, replicates in plastids through a rolling-circle mechanism involving hammerhead ribozymes. CChMVd RNA adopts a branched conformation stabilized by a kissing-loop interaction, resembling peach latent mosaic viroid in this respect. Chrysanthemum is the only natural and experimental host for CChMVd, which in the most sensitive varieties induces leaf mottling and chlorosis, delay in flowering, and dwarfing. The viroid has been found in major chrysanthemum growing areas including Europe and Asia. There are natural variants in which the change (UUUC→GAAA) mapping at a tetraloop in the CChMVd branched conformation is sufficient to change the symptomatic phenotype into a nonsymptomatic one without altering the viroid titer. Preinfection with nonsymptomatic variants prevents challenge inoculation with symptomatic ones. Moreover, experimental coinoculation with symptomatic and nonsymptomatic CChMVd variants results in symptomless phenotypes only when the latter is in vast excess, thus indicating its lower fitness.
Bücher und Buchkapitel

Tissier, A.; Ziegler, J.; Vogt, T.; Specialized Plant Metabolites: Diversity and Biosynthesis (Krauss, G.-J. & Nies, D. H., eds.). 14-37, (2015) ISBN: 9783527686063 DOI: 10.1002/9783527686063.ch2

Plant secondary metabolites, also termed specialized plant metabolites, currently comprise more than 200 000 natural products that are all based on a few biosynthetic pathways and key primary metabolites. Some pathways like flavonoid and terpenoid biosynthesis are universally distributed in the plant kingdom, whereas others like alkaloid or cyanogenic glycoside biosynthesis are restricted to a limited set of taxa. Diversification is achieved by an array of mechanisms at the genetic and enzymatic level including gene duplications, substrate promiscuity of enzymes, cell‐specific regulatory systems, together with modularity and combinatorial aspects. Specialized metabolites reflect adaptations to a specific environment. The observed diversity illustrates the heterogeneity and multitude of ecological habitats and niches that plants have colonized so far and constitutes a reservoir of potential new metabolites that may provide adaptive advantage in the face of environmental changes. The code that connects the observed chemical diversity to this ecological diversity is largely unknown. One way to apprehend this diversity is to realize its tremendous plasticity and evolutionary potential. This chapter presents an overview of the most widespread and popular secondary metabolites, which provide a definite advantage to adapt to or to colonize a particular environment, making the boundary between the “primary” and the “secondary” old fashioned and blurry.
Publikation

Flores, R.; Gago-Zachert, S.; Serra, P.; Sanjuán, R.; Elena, S. F.; Viroids: Survivors from the RNA World? Annu. Rev. Microbiol. 68, 395-414, (2014) DOI: 10.1146/annurev-micro-091313-103416

Because RNA can be a carrier of genetic information and a biocatalyst, there is a consensus that it emerged before DNA and proteins, which eventually assumed these roles and relegated RNA to intermediate functions. If such a scenario—the so-called RNA world—existed, we might hope to find its relics in our present world. The properties of viroids that make them candidates for being survivors of the RNA world include those expected for primitive RNA replicons: (a) small size imposed by error-prone replication, (b) high G + C content to increase replication fidelity, (c) circular structure for assuring complete replication without genomic tags, (d) structural periodicity for modular assembly into enlarged genomes, (e) lack of protein-coding ability consistent with a ribosome-free habitat, and (f) replication mediated in some by ribozymes, the fingerprint of the RNA world. With the advent of DNA and proteins, those protoviroids lost some abilities and became the plant parasites we now know.
Publikation

Fellenberg, C.; Ziegler, J.; Handrick, V.; Vogt, T.; Polyamine homeostasis in wild type and phenolamide deficient Arabidopsis thaliana stamens Front. Plant Sci. 3, 180, (2012) DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2012.00180

Polyamines (PAs) like putrescine, spermidine, and spermine are ubiquitous polycationic molecules that occur in all living cells and have a role in a wide variety of biological processes. High amounts of spermidine conjugated to hydroxycinnamic acids are detected in the tryphine of Arabidopsis thaliana pollen grains. Tapetum localized spermidine hydroxycinnamic acid transferase (SHT) is essential for the biosynthesis of these anther specific tris-conjugated spermidine derivatives. Sht knockout lines show a strong reduction of hydroxycinnamic acid amides (HCAAs). The effect of HCAA-deficient anthers on the level of free PAs was measured by a new sensitive and reproducible method using 9-fluorenylmethyl chloroformate (FMOC) and fluorescence detection by HPLC. PA concentrations can be accurately determined even when very limited amounts of plant material, as in the case of A. thaliana stamens, are available. Analysis of free PAs in wild type stamens compared to sht deficient mutants and transcript levels of key PA biosynthetic genes revealed a highly controlled regulation of PA homeostasis in A. thaliana anthers.
Publikation

Serra, P.; BANI HASHEMIAN, S. M.; PENSABENE-BELLAVIA, G.; Gago, S.; DURAN-VILA, N.; An artificial chimeric derivative of Citrus viroid V involves the terminal left domain in pathogenicity Mol. Plant Pathol. 10, 515-522, (2009) DOI: 10.1111/j.1364-3703.2009.00553.x

The recently described Citrus viroid V (CVd‐V) induces, in Etrog citron, mild stunting and very small necrotic lesions and cracks, sometimes filled with gum. As Etrog citron plants co‐infected with Citrus dwarfing viroid (CDVd) and CVd‐V show synergistic interactions, these host–viroid combinations provide a convenient model to identify the pathogenicity determinant(s). The biological effects of replacing limited portions of the rod‐like structure of CVd‐V with the corresponding portions of CDVd are reported. Chimeric constructs were synthesized using a novel polymerase chain reaction‐based approach, much more flexible than those based on restriction enzymes used in previous studies. Of the seven chimeras (Ch) tested, only one (Ch5) proved to be infectious. Plants infected with Ch5 showed no symptoms and, although this novel chimera was able to replicate to relatively high titres in singly infected plants, it was rapidly displaced by either CVd‐V or CDVd in doubly infected plants. The results demonstrate that direct interaction(s) between structural elements in the viroid RNA (in this case, the terminal left domain) and as yet unidentified host factors play an important role in modulating viroid pathogenicity. This is the first pathogenic determinant mapped in species of the genus Apscaviroid.
Publikation

Serra, P.; Gago, S.; Duran-Vila, N.; A single nucleotide change in Hop stunt viroid modulates citrus cachexia symptoms Virus Res. 138, 130-134, (2008) DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2008.08.003

Cachexia disease of citrus is caused by Hop stunt viroid (HSVd). In citrus, pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains differ by a “cachexia expression motif” of five to six nucleotides located in the variable domain of the proposed rod-like secondary structure. Here, site-directed mutants were generated to investigate if all these nucleotides were required for infectivity and/or symptom expression. Specifically an artificial cachexia inducing mutant M0 was generated by introducing the six nucleotides changes of the “cachexia expression motif” into a non-pathogenic sequence variant and M0 was used as a template to systematically restore some of the introduced changes. The resulting mutants in which specific changes introduced to generate M0, were restored presented a variety of responses: (i) M1, obtained by introducing two insertions forming a base-pair, was infectious but non-pathogenic; (ii) M2, obtained by introducing an insertion and restoring a substitution, presented low infectivity and the resulting progeny reverted to M0; (iii) M3, obtained by restoring a single substitution in the lower strand of the viroid secondary structure, was infectious but induced only mild cachexia symptoms; (iv) M4, obtained by restoring a single susbtitution in the upper strand of the viroid secondary structure, was non-infectious. These results confirm that the “cachexia expression motif” plays a major role in inciting cachexia symptoms, and that subtle changes within this motif affect symptom severity and may even suppress symptom expression.
Publikation

Fellenberg, C.; Milkowski, C.; Hause, B.; Lange, P.-R.; Böttcher, C.; Schmidt, J.; Vogt, T.; Tapetum-specific location of a cation-dependent O-methyltransferase in Arabidopsis thaliana Plant J. 56, 132-145, (2008) DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-313X.2008.03576.x

Cation‐ and S ‐adenosyl‐l ‐methionine (AdoMet)‐dependent plant natural product methyltransferases are referred to as CCoAOMTs because of their preferred substrate, caffeoyl coenzyme A (CCoA). The enzymes are encoded by a small family of genes, some of which with a proven role in lignin monomer biosynthesis. In Arabidopsis thaliana individual members of this gene family are temporally and spatially regulated. The gene At1g67990 is specifically expressed in flower buds, and is not detected in any other organ, such as roots, leaves or stems. Several lines of evidence indicate that the At1g67990 transcript is located in the flower buds, whereas the corresponding CCoAOMT‐like protein, termed AtTSM1, is located exclusively in the tapetum of developing stamen. Flowers of At1g67990 RNAi‐suppressed plants are characterized by a distinct flower chemotype with severely reduced levels of the N  ′,N  ′′‐ bis‐(5‐hydroxyferuloyl)‐N  ′′′‐sinapoylspermidine compensated for by N1 ,N5 ,N10 ‐tris‐(5‐hydroxyferuloyl)spermidine derivative, which is characterized by the lack of a single methyl group in the sinapoyl moiety. This severe change is consistent with the observed product profile of AtTSM1 for aromatic phenylpropanoids. Heterologous expression of the recombinant protein shows the highest activity towards a series of caffeic acid esters, but 5‐hydroxyferuloyl spermidine conjugates are also accepted substrates. The in vitro substrate specificity and the in vivo RNAi‐mediated suppression data of the corresponding gene suggest a role of this cation‐dependent CCoAOMT‐like protein in the stamen/pollen development of A. thaliana .
Publikation

Schilling, S.; Manhart, S.; Hoffmann, T.; Ludwig, H.-H.; Wasternack, C.; Demuth, H.-U.; Substrate Specificity of Glutaminyl Cyclases from Plants and Animals Biol. Chem. 384, 1583-1592, (2003) DOI: 10.1515/BC.2003.175

Glutaminyl cyclases (QC) catalyze the intramolecular cyclization of N-terminal glutamine residues of peptides and proteins. For a comparison of the substrate specificity of human and papaya QC enzymes, a novel continuous assay was established by adapting an existing discontinuous method. Specificity constants (kcat/Km) of dipeptides and dipeptide surrogates were higher for plant QC, whereas the selectivity for oligopeptides was similar for both enzymes. However, only the specificity constants of mammalian QC were dependent on size and composition of the substrates. Specificity constants of both enzymes were equally pH-dependent in the acidic pH-region, revealing a pKa value identical to the pKa of the substrate, suggesting similarities in the substrate conversion mode. Accordingly, both QCs converted the L-?homoglutaminyl residue in the peptide H-?homoGln-Phe-Lys-Arg-Leu-Ala-NH2 and the glutaminyl residues of the branched peptide H-Gln-Lys(Gln)-Arg-Leu-Ala-NH2 as well as the partially cyclized peptide H-Gln-cyclo( N?-Lys-Arg-Pro-Ala-Gly-Phe). In contrast, only QC from C. papaya was able to cyclize a methylated glutamine residue, while this compound did not even inhibit human QC-catalysis, suggesting distinct substrate recognition pattern. The conversion of the potential physiological substrates gastrin, neurotensin and [GlN1]-fertilization promoting peptide indicates that human QC may play a key role in posttranslational modification of most if not all pGlu-containing hormones.
Publikation

Schilling, S.; Niestroj, A. J.; Rahfeld, J.-U.; Hoffmann, T.; Wermann, M.; Zunkel, K.; Wasternack, C.; Demuth, H.-U.; Identification of Human Glutaminyl Cyclase as a Metalloenzyme J. Biol. Chem. 278, 49773-49779, (2003) DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M309077200

Human glutaminyl cyclase (QC) was identified as a metalloenzyme as suggested by the time-dependent inhibition by the heterocyclic chelators 1,10-phenanthroline and dipicolinic acid. The effect of EDTA on QC catalysis was negligible. Inactivated enzyme could be fully restored by the addition of Zn2+ in the presence of equimolar concentrations of EDTA. Little reactivation was observed with Co2+ and Mn2+. Other metal ions such as K+, Ca2+, and Ni2+ were inactive under the same conditions. Additionally, imidazole and imidazole derivatives were identified as competitive inhibitors of QC. An initial structure activity-based inhibitor screening of imidazole-derived compounds revealed potent inhibition of QC by imidazole N-1 derivatives. Subsequent data base screening led to the identification of two highly potent inhibitors, 3-[3-(1H-imidazol-1-yl)propyl]-2-thioxoimidazolidin-4-one and 1,4-bis-(imidazol-1-yl)-methyl-2,5-dimethylbenzene, which exhibited respective Ki values of 818 ± 1 and 295 ± 5 nm. The binding properties of the imidazole derivatives were further analyzed by the pH dependence of QC inhibition. The kinetically obtained pKa values of 6.94 ± 0.02, 6.93 ± 0.03, and 5.60 ± 0.05 for imidazole, methylimidazole, and benzimidazole, respectively, match the values obtained by titrimetric pKa determination, indicating the requirement for an unprotonated nitrogen for binding to QC. Similarly, the pH dependence of the kinetic parameter Km for the QC-catalyzed conversion of H-Gln-7-ami-no-4-methylcoumarin also implies that only N-terminally unprotonated substrate molecules are bound to the active site of the enzyme, whereas turnover is not affected. The results reveal human QC as a metal-dependent transferase, suggesting that the active site-bound metal is a potential site for interaction with novel, highly potent competitive inhibitors.
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