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Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression in citrus leaves: a rapid tool for gene expression and functional gene assay

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Abstract

In this study, we present a method for transient expression of the type III effector AvrGf1 from Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri strain Aw in grapefruit leaves (Citrus paradisi) via Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The coding sequence of avrGf1 was placed under the control of the constitutive CaMV 35S promoter in the binary vectors pGWB2 and pGWB5. Infiltration of grapefruit leaves with A. tumefaciens carrying these constructs triggered a hypersensitive response (HR) in grapefruit 4 days after inoculation. When transiently expressed in grapefruit leaves, two mutants, AvrGf1ΔN116 and AvrGf1ΔC83, failed to induce an HR. Moreover, using bioinformatics tools, a chloroplast transit signal was predicted at the N terminus of AvrGf1. We demonstrated chloroplast localization by using an AvrGf1::GFP fusion protein, where confocal images revealed that GFP fluorescence was accumulating in the stomatal cells that are abundant in chloroplasts. Transient expression in citrus has the potential for aiding in the development of new disease defense strategies in citrus.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Plant Pathology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA

    Jose F. L. Figueiredo & Jeffrey B. Jones

  2. Institute of Genetics, Ludwig-Maximillians University, Großhaderner Straße 2-4, 82152, Martinsried, Germany

    Patrick Römer & Thomas Lahaye

  3. Citrus Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Lake Alfred, Florida, USA

    James H. Graham

  4. Plant Pathology Department, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, USA

    Frank F. White

Authors
  1. Jose F. L. Figueiredo
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  2. Patrick Römer
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  3. Thomas Lahaye
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  4. James H. Graham
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  5. Frank F. White
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  6. Jeffrey B. Jones
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jeffrey B. Jones.

Additional information

Communicated by S. Merkle.

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Figueiredo, J.F.L., Römer, P., Lahaye, T. et al. Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression in citrus leaves: a rapid tool for gene expression and functional gene assay. Plant Cell Rep 30, 1339–1345 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-011-1045-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-011-1045-7

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