P-192 - 'NLPs – the key to unlocking virulence in Phytophthora infestans?'

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

09:55 - 11:30

Location: Confex Hall 3

Microbial infection strategies (pathogens & non-pathogens)

Presenting Author(s)

RA

Rebecca Atkinson

University of Dundee
Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom

Author(s)

SW

Shumei Wang

University of Dundee
Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom
WW

Wei Wang

University of Dundee
Dundee, UNITED KINGDOM
HM

Hazel McLellan, PhD

University of Dundee
Invergowrie, Scotland, United Kingdom
SB

Susan Breen

Post-doc
Divison of Plant Science
Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom
LW

Lydia Welsh

Laboratory Technician
James Hutton institute
Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom
SW

Stephen C. Whisson

Principle Investigator
James Hutton institute
Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom
PB

Petra C. Boevink

James hutton institute
Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom
PB

Paul R.J. Birch

University of Dundee
Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom

Phytophthora infestans is a plant pathogen which constitutes a major threat to global food security. Understanding how P. infestans enacts virulence in its hosts is of the utmost importance for developing future control strategies. P. infestans produces effectors with an arginine-any amino acid-arginine-leucine (RxLR) motif. These RxLR effectors are released from P. infestans haustoria associated with extracellular vesicles (EVs), which can then be absorbed by plant cells via clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME). The structure of P. infestans EVs and how CME is initiated is not yet known, but we hypothesise that proteins associated with EVs stimulate CME. Through comparative data analysis of P. infestans gene expression during plant infection and P. infestans EV proteomics, we have uncovered key insights into which proteins may play a role in CME effector translocation and be associated with EV structure. Proteins of interest include several microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs), for example, necrosis-and-ethylene1-like-proteins (NLPs). NLPs associate with the plant membrane, and on some hosts produce cytotoxic effects. Results suggest that specific proteins have differential affinities for EVs. This suggests specific proteins may be involved at stages of EV translocation. Further research is needed to validate which MAMPs or NLPs associate with EVs during P. infestans infection.