Specialization of independently acquired flagellar FliC proteins in plant-associated
Russ D, Saha C, Paul K, Zheng Z, Law TF
Plant Signaling
Understanding exactly how bacteria sneak past a plant's defenses — or get caught — could lead to smarter, more targeted ways to protect crops and garden plants from harmful bacterial infections without broad-spectrum pesticides.
Plants have a kind of early-warning system that spots certain proteins on the surface of bacteria and triggers an immune response. Scientists discovered that one group of common plant-dwelling bacteria carries two different versions of a key surface protein: one for swimming around, and one for actually grabbing onto and moving into plant tissue. The sneaky part? The plant's immune system only detects the 'grabbing' version — so the bacteria can swim freely but get flagged the moment they try to settle in.
Key Findings
Sphingomonas bacteria carry two genetically distinct flagellin proteins (FliC-L and FliC-H) acquired independently, with comparative genomics showing this split is widespread across plant-associated strains.
The non-immunogenic FliC-L is necessary and sufficient for full directional swimming, while the immunogenic FliC-H is dispensable for motility but required for full surface attachment and colonization.
The plant immune receptor FLS2 recognizes the colonization-specific flagellin (FliC-H) rather than the motility flagellin, suggesting the plant immune system may selectively target bacteria at the point of tissue entry.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Bacteria that live on plants have evolved a clever trick: splitting their swimming and surface-attachment abilities across two separate proteins, with the plant's immune system only able to detect the attachment protein — potentially limiting how deeply bacteria can invade leaf and root tissue.
Abstract Preview
Plants monitor their environment for microbial invaders using pattern-recognition receptors that detect microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs). Flagellin, the main component of bacterial fla...
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