Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions (Oct 2005)

Tobacco Transcription Factor WRKY1 Is Phosphorylated by the MAP Kinase SIPK and Mediates HR-Like Cell Death in Tobacco

  • Frank L. H. Menke,
  • Hong-Gu Kang,
  • Zhixiang Chen,
  • Jeong Mee Park,
  • Dhirendra Kumar,
  • Daniel F. Klessig

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-18-1027
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 18, no. 10
pp. 1027 – 1034

Abstract

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The salicylic acid-induced protein kinase (SIPK) of tobacco, which is a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), is activated by various biotic and abiotic treatments. Overexpression of SIPK has been shown to trigger cell death. In this study, a targeted yeast two-hybrid approach identified the tobacco transcription factor WRKY1 as a potential substrate. SIPK phosphorylated WRKY1, which resulted in enhanced DNA-binding activity of WRKY1 to its cognate binding site, a W box sequence from the tobacco chitinase gene CHN50. SIPK-mediated enhancement of WRKY1 DNA-binding activity was inhibited by staurosporine, a general kinase inhibitor. Co-expression of SIPK and WRKY1 in Nicotiana benthamiana led to more rapid cell death than expression of SIPK alone, suggesting that WRKY1 is involved in the formation of hypersensitive response-like cell death and may be a component of the signaling cascade downstream of SIPK.