Abstract
Tobacco leaf sections were treated with actin inhibitors, i.e., cytochalasins, to determine the effects of actin depolymerization on tobacco defense responses. Inoculation of the leaf sections with the pathogen Erysiphe cichoracearum, depolymerized the actin cytoskeleton, priming the cells for a hypersensitive response-like cell death. Further, expression of the acidic PR1 and PR2 genes were induced in cytochalasin-treated leaf sections. The intensity of the cytochalasin effects on the defense responses was closely correlated with the extent of actin depolymerization. This suggests that plant cells may perceive perturbation of the actin cytoskeleton, and this stimulus may trigger plant defense responses.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Dr. Yuko Ohashi (National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, Tsukuba, Japan) for providing the DNA probes for acidic PR1 and PR2.
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Kobayashi, Y., Kobayashi, I. Depolymerization of the actin cytoskeleton induces defense responses in tobacco plants. J Gen Plant Pathol 73, 360–364 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10327-007-0029-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10327-007-0029-5