Biotrophic plant pathogens encounter a postinfection basal resistance layer controlled by the lipase-like protein enhanced disease susceptibility 1 (EDS1) and its sequence-related interaction partners, senescence-associated gene 101 (SAG101) and phytoalexin deficient 4 (PAD4). Maintainance of separate EDS1 family member clades through angiosperm evolution suggests distinct functional attributes. We report the Arabidopsis EDS1-SAG101 heterodimer crystal structure with juxtaposed N-terminal α/β hydrolase and C-terminal α-helical EP domains aligned via a large conserved interface. Mutational analysis of the EDS1-SAG101 heterodimer and a derived EDS1-PAD4 structural model shows that EDS1 signals within mutually exclusive heterocomplexes. Although there is evolutionary conservation of α/β hydrolase topology in all three proteins, a noncatalytic resistance mechanism is indicated. Instead, the respective N-terminal domains appear to facilitate binding of the essential EP domains to create novel interaction surfaces on the heterodimer. Transitions between distinct functional EDS1 heterodimers might explain the central importance and versatility of this regulatory node in plant immunity.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are potent signal molecules rapidly generated in response to stress. Detection of pathogenassociated molecular patterns induces a transient apoplastic ROS through the function of the NADPH respiratory burst oxidase homologs D (RbohD). However, little is known about the regulation of pathogen-associated molecular pattern-elicited ROS or its role in plant immunity. We investigated ROS production triggered by bacterial flagellin (flg22) in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). The oxidative burst was diminished in ethylene-insensitive mutants. Flagellin Sensitive2 (FLS2) accumulation was reduced in etr1 and ein2, indicating a requirement of ethylene signaling for FLS2 expression. Multiplication of virulent bacteria was enhanced in Arabidopsis lines displaying altered ROS production at early but not late stages of infection, suggesting an impairment of preinvasive immunity. Stomatal closure, a mechanism used to reduce bacterial entry into plant tissues, was abolished in etr1, ein2, and rbohD mutants. These results point to the importance of flg22-triggered ROS at an early stage of the plant immune response.

SummaryArabidopsis MPK4 has been implicated in plant defense regulation because mpk4 knockout plants exhibit constitutive activation of salicylic acid (SA)-dependent defenses, but fail to induce jasmonic acid (JA) defense marker genes in response to JA. We show here that mpk4 mutants are also defective in defense gene induction in response to ethylene (ET), and that they are more susceptible than wild-type (WT) to Alternaria brassicicola that induces the ET/JA defense pathway(s). Both SA-repressing and ET/JA-(co)activating functions depend on MPK4 kinase activity and involve the defense regulators EDS1 and PAD4, as mutations in these genes suppress de-repression of the SA pathway and suppress the block of the ET/JA pathway in mpk4. EDS1/PAD4 thus affect SA-ET/JA signal antagonism as activators of SA but as repressors of ET/JA defenses, and MPK4 negatively regulates both of these functions. We also show that the MPK4-EDS1/PAD4 branch of ET defense signaling is independent of the ERF1 transcription factor, and use comparative microarray analysis of ctr1, ctr1/ mpk4, mpk4 and WT to show that MPK4 is required for induction of a small subset of ET-regulated genes. The regulation of some, but not all, of these genes involves EDS1 and PAD4.

An important layer of plant innate immunity to host-adapted pathogens is conferred by intracellular nucleotide-binding/oligomerization domain-leucine rich repeat (NB-LRR) receptors recognizing specific microbial effectors. Signaling from activated receptors of the TIR (Toll/Interleukin-1 Receptor)-NB-LRR class converges on the nucleo-cytoplasmic immune regulator EDS1 (Enhanced Disease Susceptibility1). In this report we show that a receptor-stimulated increase in accumulation of nuclear EDS1 precedes or coincides with the EDS1-dependent induction and repression of defense-related genes. EDS1 is capable of nuclear transport receptor-mediated shuttling between the cytoplasm and nucleus. By enhancing EDS1 export from inside nuclei (through attachment of an additional nuclear export sequence (NES)) or conditionally releasing EDS1 to the nucleus (by fusion to a glucocorticoid receptor (GR)) in transgenic Arabidopsis we establish that the EDS1 nuclear pool is essential for resistance to biotrophic and hemi-biotrophic pathogens and for transcriptional reprogramming. Evidence points to post-transcriptional processes regulating receptor-triggered accumulation of EDS1 in nuclei. Changes in nuclear EDS1 levels become equilibrated with the cytoplasmic EDS1 pool and cytoplasmic EDS1 is needed for complete resistance and restriction of host cell death at infection sites. We propose that coordinated nuclear and cytoplasmic activities of EDS1 enable the plant to mount an appropriately balanced immune response to pathogen attack.

Summary• Enhanced Disease Susceptibility1 (EDS1) is an important regulator of plant basal and receptor-triggered immunity. Arabidopsis EDS1 interacts with two related proteins, Phytoalexin Deficient4 (PAD4) and Senescence Associated Gene101 (SAG101), whose combined activities are essential for defense signaling. The different sizes and intracellular distributions of EDS1-PAD4 and EDS1-SAG101 complexes in Arabidopsis leaf tissues suggest that they perform nonredundant functions.• The nature and biological relevance of EDS1 interactions with PAD4 and SAG101 were explored using yeast three-hybrid assays, in vitro analysis of recombinant proteins purified from Escherichia coli, and characterization of Arabidopsis transgenic plants expressing an eds1 mutant (eds1 L262P ) protein which no longer binds PAD4 but retains interaction with SAG101.• EDS1 forms molecularly distinct complexes with PAD4 or SAG101 without additional plant factors. Loss of interaction with EDS1 reduces PAD4 post-transcriptional accumulation, consistent with the EDS1 physical association stabilizing PAD4. The dissociated forms of EDS1 and PAD4 are fully competent in signaling receptortriggered localized cell death at infection foci. By contrast, an EDS1-PAD4 complex is necessary for basal resistance involving transcriptional up-regulation of PAD4 itself and mobilization of salicylic acid defenses.• Different EDS1 and PAD4 molecular configurations have distinct and separable functions in the plant innate immune response.

Rapid activation of phospholipase A (PLA) by auxin or plant-pathogen interaction suggests a function in signal transduction for this enzyme, but the molecular identification of a cytosolic PLA carrying out this function remains open. We isolated four cDNA sequences from Arabidopsis (ecotype Columbia), AtPLA I, AtPLA IIA, AtPLA IVA, and AtPLA IVC, which are members of the patatin-related PLA gene family in plants and which are homologous to the animal Ca 2ϩ -independent PLA 2 gene family. Expression was measured by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, and AtPLA I transcripts were found preferentially in shoots, AtPLA IIA and AtPLA IVA in roots, and AtPLA IVC in flowers. Transient expression of the four PLA-green fluorescent protein fusion proteins in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) leaves showed they were located in the cytosol and not in the vacuoles. Surprisingly, AtPLA::green fluorescent protein was also localized to chloroplasts. The enzymatic activity of the purified recombinant AtPLA IVA toward phosphatidylcholine was dependent on Ca 2ϩ , saturated at 0.5 mm, and had a pH optimum of about 7.0. It had both PLA 1 and PLA 2 specificity. The enzyme showed in vitro highest sensitivity toward the PLA 2 inhibitors palmitoyltrifluoromethyl ketone (PACOCF 3 , K i approximately 30 nm), arachidonyltrifluoromethyl ketone (AACOCF 3 , K i approximately 25 m), and tetrahydro-3-(1-naphtalenyl)-2H-pyran-2-one (K i approximately 200 nm) and was also sensitive to other previously used inhibitors 5,8,11,14-eicosatetraynoic acid (K i approximately 3 m) and nordihydroguajaretic acid (K i approximately 15 m). The influence of these PLA 2 inhibitors on elongation in etiolated Arabidopsis seedlings was tested, and tetrahydro-3-(1-naphtalenyl)-2H-pyran-2-one and 5,8,11,14-eicosatetraynoic acid inhibited hypocotyl elongation maximally at concentrations close to their K i in vitro.

SUMMARYReactive oxygen species (ROS) have emerged as signals in the responses of plants to stress. Arabidopsis Enhanced Disease Susceptibility1 (EDS1) regulates defense and cell death against biotrophic pathogens and controls cell death propagation in response to chloroplast-derived ROS. Arabidopsis Nudix hydrolase7 (nudt7) mutants are sensitized to photo-oxidative stress and display EDS1-dependent enhanced resistance, salicylic acid (SA) accumulation and initiation of cell death. Here we explored the relationship between EDS1, EDS1-regulated SA and ROS by examining gene expression profiles, photo-oxidative stress and resistance phenotypes of nudt7 mutants in combination with eds1 and the SA-biosynthetic mutant, sid2. We establish that EDS1 controls steps downstream of chloroplast-derived O 2•) that lead to SA-assisted H 2 O 2 accumulation as part of a mechanism limiting cell death. A combination of EDS1-regulated SA-antagonized and SApromoted processes is necessary for resistance to host-adapted pathogens and for a balanced response to photo-oxidative stress. In contrast to SA, the apoplastic ROS-producing enzyme NADPH oxidase RbohD promotes initiation of cell death during photo-oxidative stress. Thus, chloroplastic O 2 •) signals are processed by EDS1 to produce counter-balancing activities of SA and RbohD in the control of cell death. Our data strengthen the idea that EDS1 responds to the status of O 2 •) or O 2 •) -generated molecules to coordinate cell death and defense outputs. This activity may enable the plant to respond flexibly to different biotic and abiotic stresses in the environment.

Reliance of biotrophic pathogens on living plant tissues to propagate implies strong interdependence between host metabolism and nutrient uptake by the pathogen. However, factors determining host suitability and establishment of infection are largely unknown. We describe a loss-of-inhibition allele of ASPARTATE KINASE2 and a loss-of-function allele of DIHYDRODIPICOLINATE SYNTHASE2 identified in a screen for Arabidopsis thaliana mutants with increased resistance to the obligate biotrophic oomycete Hyaloperonospora arabidopsidis (Hpa). Through different molecular mechanisms, these mutations perturb amino acid homeostasis leading to overaccumulation of the Asp-derived amino acids Met, Thr, and Ile. Although detrimental for the plant, the mutations do not cause defense activation, and both mutants retain full susceptibility to the adapted obligate biotrophic fungus Golovinomyces orontii (Go). Chemical treatments mimicking the mutants' metabolic state identified Thr as the amino acid suppressing Hpa but not Go colonization. We conclude that perturbations in amino acid homeostasis render the mutant plants unsuitable as an infection substrate for Hpa. This may be explained by deployment of the same amino acid biosynthetic pathways by oomycetes and plants. Our data show that the plant host metabolic state can, in specific ways, influence the ability of adapted biotrophic strains to cause disease.