Long-Term Consequences of PTI Activation and Its Manipulation by Root-Associated Microbiota.

In nature, plants are constantly colonized by a massive diversity of microbes engaged in mutualistic, pathogenic or commensal relationships with the host. Molecular patterns present in these microbes activate pattern-triggered immunity (PTI), which detects microbes in the apoplast or at the tissue surface. Whether and how PTI distinguishes among soil-borne pathogens, opportunistic pathogens, and commensal microbes within the soil microbiota remains unclear.

Nitrogen Deficiency-induced Bacterial Community Shifts in Soybean Roots.

Nitrogen deficiency affects soybean growth and physiology, such as symbiosis with rhizobia; however, its effects on the bacterial composition of the soybean root microbiota remain unclear. A bacterial community analysis by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing showed nitrogen deficiency-induced bacterial community shifts in soybean roots with the marked enrichment of Methylobacteriaceae. The abundance of Methylobacteriaceae was low in the roots of field-grown soybean without symptoms of nitrogen deficiency.

Tobacco Root Endophytic Harbors Genomic Features Enabling the Catabolism of Host-Specific Plant Specialized Metabolites.

Plant roots constitute the primary interface between plants and soilborne microorganisms and harbor microbial communities called the root microbiota. Recent studies have demonstrated a significant contribution of plant specialized metabolites (PSMs) to the assembly of root microbiota. However, the mechanistic and evolutionary details underlying the PSM-mediated microbiota assembly and its contribution to host specificity remain elusive.

X-ray structures of fructosyl peptide oxidases revealing residues responsible for gating oxygen access in the oxidative half reaction.

Current enzymatic systems for quantifying glycated hemoglobin are based on the FAD-containing enzyme fructosyl peptide oxidase (FPOX). FPOX has substrate specificity for fructosyl- N-valyl-histidine derived from proteolytic digestion of the N-terminus of the HbA1c β-chain. This study reports the X-ray structures of the wild-type and Asn56Ala (N56A) mutant of Phaeosphaeria nodorum fructosyl peptide oxidase (PnFPOX) to elucidate the residues responsible for the oxidative half-reaction.