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Poster

Session: Session 1 Presenting Authors at Posters (Odds)

P-383 - Regulation of plant immunity through (sub)compartmentalization of the RNA granule protein TZF9

Monday, July 14, 2025
13:30 - 15:15  
Location: Confex Hall 3
Subcellular dynamics and signaling in host-microbe interactions

    Presenting Author(s)

  • AK

    Anindita Anant Karkhanis

    Leibniz Institute of Plant Biochemistry
    Halle Saale, Saxony Anhalt, GERMANY

    • Author(s)

  • DT

    Domenika Thieme

    Leibniz Institute of Plant Biochemistry
    Halle Saale, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany

  • SM

    Susanne Matschi

    Postdoc
    Leibniz-Institute of Plant Biochemistry
    Halle, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany

  • JL

    Justin Lee

    PI
    Leibniz Inst of Plant Biochemistry
    Halle Saale, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany

How MAPKs act in multiple plant processes without erroneous crosstalk is still poorly understood. We propose MAMP(Microbial Associated Molecular Pattern)- mediated phospho-coding and sub-compartmentalization of MAPK substrates in biocondensates to be part of mechanism for signaling specificity. The Tandem Zinc Finger 9(TZF9) protein is a phospho-substrate of the MAPKs, MPK3/6. This RNA binding protein forms cytoplasmic granules that disappear upon flg22 elicitation. Using proximity labeling, we characterize the TZF9 proximitome to be enriched with proteins involved in translational control, including components of cytoplasmic mRNA quality control. TZF9’s ability to interact with specific Poly-A Binding Proteins(PABPs) and induce PABP condensate formation may interfere with recruitment of translational initiation complex components, thereby facilitating translational arrest. Alternatively, TZF9 may affect PABPs binding to a R-motif in the 5’UTR regions of some defense-related mRNAs, mediating selective translation. Our preliminary data show phospho-status of TZF9 influences this selective translation efficiency, suggesting MAMP-mediated TZF9 granule dynamics may control translatome changes. We are generating stable Arabidopsis translation reporter lines in tzf9 background to understand if/how TZF9-PABP complexes affect selective translation during plant immunity. Our data highlight the potential for MAPK substrates sub-compartmentalization to mount a dynamic immune response.