Cytotoxic function of xylanase VdXyn4 in the plant vascular wilt pathogen Verticillium dahliae.

ABSTRACT: Phytopathogen xylanases play critical roles in pathogenesis, likely due to their ability to degrade plant structural barriers and manipulate host immunity. As an invader of plant xylem vessels, the fungus Verticillium dahliae is thought to deploy complex cell wall degrading enzymes. Comparative genomics analyses revealed that the V. dahliae genome encodes a family of six xylanases, each possessing a glycosyl hydrolase 11 domain, but the functions of these enzymes are undetermined. Characterizing gene deletion mutants revealed that only V. dahliae xylanase 4 (VdXyn4) degraded the plant cell wall and contributed to the virulence of V. dahliae. VdXyn4 displayed cytotoxic activity and induced a necrosis phenotype during the late stages of infection, leading to vein and petiole collapse that de

SUBMITTER: Wang D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8418393 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature