Abstract.
An antiserum raised against the purified 33-kDa β-1,3-glucanase of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was employed to investigate the ultrastructural localization of the enzyme in wheat leaves infected with Puccinia recondita Rob. ex Desm. f.sp. tritici Eriks. and Henn. using a post-embedding immunogold labelling technique. In both compatible and incompatible interactions, β-1,3-glucanase was detected in the host plasmalemma and in the domain of the host cell wall near the plasmalemma of the mesophyll cells, but higher concentrations of the enzyme were detected in infected resistant wheat leaves than in infected susceptible ones. β-1,3-Glucanase was also found in the secondary thickening of xylem vessels and in the walls of guard cells, epidermal cells and phloem elements, while no labelling was observed in host organelles, viz. vacuoles, mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi bodies, nuclei and chloroplasts. A low concentration of the enzyme was detected on the intercellular hyphal wall and in the hyphal cytoplasm. In the compatible interaction, β-1,3-glucanase was demonstrated to accumulate predominantly in the haustorial wall and extrahaustorial matrix. In the incompatible interaction, strong labelling for β-1,3-glucanase was found in host cell wall appositions, in the extracellular matrix in the intercellular space, and in electron-dense structures of host origin which occurred in the incompatible interaction only.
Similar content being viewed by others
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Received: 22 July 1997 / Accepted: 16 August 1997
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hu, G., Rijkenberg, F. Subcellular localization of β-1,3-glucanase in Puccinia recondita f.sp. tritici-infected wheat leaves. Planta 204, 324–334 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/s004250050263
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s004250050263