TonB-dependent receptors (TBDRs) are outer membrane proteins mainly known for the active transport of iron siderophore complexes in Gram-negative bacteria. Analysis of the genome of the phytopathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris (Xcc), predicts 72 TBDRs. Such an overrepresentation is common in Xanthomonas species but is limited to only a small number of bacteria. Here, we show that one Xcc TBDR transports sucrose with a very high affinity, suggesting that it might be a sucrose scavenger. This TBDR acts with an inner membrane transporter, an amylosucrase and a regulator to utilize sucrose, thus defining a new type of carbohydrate utilization locus, named CUT locus, involving a TBDR for the transport of substrate across the outer membrane. This sucrose CUT locus is required for full pathogenicity on Arabidopsis, showing its importance for the adaptation to host plants. A systematic analysis of Xcc TBDR genes and a genome context survey suggested that several Xcc TBDRs belong to other CUT loci involved in the utilization of various plant carbohydrates. Interestingly, several Xcc TBDRs and CUT loci are conserved in aquatic bacteria such as Caulobacter crescentus, Colwellia psychrerythraea, Saccharophagus degradans, Shewanella spp., Sphingomonas spp. or Pseudoalteromonas spp., which share the ability to degrade a wide variety of complex carbohydrates and display TBDR overrepresentation. We therefore propose that TBDR overrepresentation and the presence of CUT loci designate the ability to scavenge carbohydrates. Thus CUT loci, which seem to participate to the adaptation of phytopathogenic bacteria to their host plants, might also play a very important role in the biogeochemical cycling of plant-derived nutrients in marine environments. Moreover, the TBDRs and CUT loci identified in this study are clearly different from those characterized in the human gut symbiont Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, which allow glycan foraging, suggesting a convergent evolution of TBDRs in Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes.

Xanthomonas campestris pathovar campestris causes black rot, a vascular disease on cruciferous plants, including Arabidopsis thaliana. The gene XC1553 from X. campestris pv. campestris strain 8004 encodes a protein containing leucine-rich repeats (LRRs) and appears to be restricted to strains of X. campestris pv. campestris. LRRs are found in a number of type III-secreted effectors in plant and animal pathogens. These prompted us to investigate the role of the XC1553 gene in the interaction between X. campestris pv. campestris and A. thaliana. Translocation assays using the hypersensitive-reaction-inducing domain of X. campestris pv. campestris AvrBs1 as a reporter revealed that XC1553 is a type III effector. Infiltration of Arabidopsis leaf mesophyll with bacterial suspensions showed no differences between the wild-type strain and an XC1553 gene mutant; both strains induced disease symptoms on Kashmir and Col-0 ecotypes. However, a clear difference was observed when bacteria were introduced into the vascular system by piercing the central vein of leaves. In this case, the wild-type strain 8004 caused disease on the Kashmir ecotype, but not on ecotype Col-0; the XC1553 gene mutant became virulent on the Col-0 ecotype and still induced disease on the Kashmir ecotype. Altogether, these data show that the XC1553 gene, which was renamed avrAC Xcc8004 , functions as an avirulence gene whose product seems to be recognized in vascular tissues.