Australian National University Canberra, Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Australia
In plant–pathogen interactions, pathogens deploy effector proteins to suppress the plant’s immune system. However, these effectors can also be recognized by immunity receptors, triggering pathogen detection and activation of defense pathways. Recent advances in our structural understanding of how immunity receptors bind effectors, combined with the modularity of some receptors that have the potential to bind “any” effector, have spurred significant interest in immunity receptor engineering. Concurrently, major strides in computational approaches; including accurate protein structure prediction, modeling of protein–protein interactions, and de novo protein binder design, have expanded our capacity to engineer immune receptors and opened avenues to suppress pathogen virulence. Effectors with important roles in disease are attractive targets for achieving robust engineered immunity. Here, I present our recent efforts in applying both experimental and computationally derived protein binders to target the critical NUDIX-family of effectors from pathogenic fungi.
