An Arabidopsis aspartic protease functions as an anti‐cell‐death component in reproduction and embryogenesis

Abstract

The components and pathways that regulate and execute developmental cell death programmes in plants remain largely unknown. We have found that the PROMOTION OF CELL SURVIVAL 1 (PCS1) gene in Arabidopsis, which encodes an aspartic protease, has an important role in determining the fate of cells in embryonic development and in reproduction processes. The loss‐of‐function mutation of PCS1 causes degeneration of both male and female gametophytes and excessive cell death of developing embryos. Conversely, ectopic expression of PCS1 causes the septum and stomium cells that normally die in the anther wall to survive instead, leading to a failure in anther dehiscence and male sterility. PCS1 provides a new avenue for understanding the mechanisms of the programmed cell death processes that are associated with developmental pathways in plants and makes available a useful tool for engineering the male sterility trait for hybrid seed production.

EAT1 promotes tapetal cell death by regulating aspartic proteases during male reproductive development in rice

“…Moreover, even though OsAP25, OsAP37, PCS1 and UNDEAD belong to the C-group of aspartic proteases 43,44 , OsAP25 and OsAP37 can promote cell death (Fig. 6b-e) whereas UNDEAD and PCS1 have anti-PCD functions 31,32 , suggesting diversified roles of aspartic proteases in plant PCD.…”

“…Arabidopsis UNDEAD, which encodes an A1 aspartic protease, suppresses tapetal PCD; knockdown of UNDEAD causes premature tapetal PCD 31 . Another Arabidopsis aspartic protease, PROMOTION OF CELL SURVIVAL1 (PCS1), has an anti-cell death role in embryonic and reproductive development 32 . A third Arabidopsis aspartic protease, CONSTITUTIVE DISEASE RESISTANCE 1 (CDR1) is associated with signalling in disease resistance 33 .…”

Aspartyl Protease-Mediated Cleavage of BAG6 Is Necessary for Autophagy and Fungal Resistance in Plants

“…In contrast, the aspartyl protease encoded by the PROMOTION OF CELL SURVIVAL1 gene in Arabidopsis functions to promote cell survival during embryogenesis and gametogenesis, and its ectopic overexpression blocks normal PCD processes associated with anther dehiscence (Ge et al, 2005). APCB1 has been suggested to encode a nucellinlike aspartyl protease (Faro and Gal, 2005).…”

Antimicrobial activity of potato aspartic proteases (StAPs) involves membrane permeabilization

“…Plant APs have been implicated in protein processing and/or degradation in different plant organs, as well as in plant senescence, stress responses, programmed cell death and reproduction (Mutlu & Gal, 1999;Davies, 1990;Rawlings & Barrett, 1995;Simões & Faro, 2004;Ge et al, 2005). StAP1 and StAP3 have been associated with the plant defence mechanism in S. tuberosum, and their antimicrobial activity, in vitro, against the potato pathogens F. solani and P. infestans has been reported (Guevara et al, 2002(Guevara et al, , 2004.…”