Suppression of MYC transcription activators by the immune cofactor NPR1 fine-tunes plant immune responses
Mika Nomoto,
Michael J. Skelly,
Tomotaka Itaya,
Tsuyoshi Mori,
Takamasa Suzuki,
Tomonao Matsushita,
Mutsutomo Tokizawa,
Keiko Kuwata,
Hitoshi Mori,
Yoshiharu Y. Yamamoto,
Tetsuya Higashiyama,
Hironaka Tsukagoshi,
Steven H. Spoel,
Yasuomi Tada
Affiliations
Mika Nomoto
Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan; Center for Gene Research, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan
Michael J. Skelly
Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, UK
Tomotaka Itaya
Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan
Tsuyoshi Mori
Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan
Takamasa Suzuki
JST ERATO Higashiyama Live-Holonics Project, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan; College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chubu University, Aichi 487-8501, Japan
Tomonao Matsushita
Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
Mutsutomo Tokizawa
Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu 501-1193, Japan
Keiko Kuwata
Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (WPI-ITbM), Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan
Hitoshi Mori
Graduate School of Agriculture, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8601, Japan
Yoshiharu Y. Yamamoto
Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences, Gifu University, Gifu 501-1193, Japan
Tetsuya Higashiyama
Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan; JST ERATO Higashiyama Live-Holonics Project, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan; Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (WPI-ITbM), Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan
Hironaka Tsukagoshi
Faculty of Agriculture, Meijo University, Tenpaku, Nagoya, Aichi 468-8502, Japan
Steven H. Spoel
Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, UK; Corresponding author
Yasuomi Tada
Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan; Center for Gene Research, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan; Corresponding author
Summary: Plants tailor immune responses to defend against pathogens with different lifestyles. In this process, antagonism between the immune hormones salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA) optimizes transcriptional signatures specifically to the attacker encountered. Antagonism is controlled by the transcription cofactor NPR1. The indispensable role of NPR1 in activating SA-responsive genes is well understood, but how it functions as a repressor of JA-responsive genes remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that SA-induced NPR1 is recruited to JA-responsive promoter regions that are co-occupied by a JA-induced transcription complex consisting of the MYC2 activator and MED25 Mediator subunit. In the presence of SA, NPR1 physically associates with JA-induced MYC2 and inhibits transcriptional activation by disrupting its interaction with MED25. Importantly, NPR1-mediated inhibition of MYC2 is a major immune mechanism for suppressing pathogen virulence. Thus, NPR1 orchestrates the immune transcriptome not only by activating SA-responsive genes but also by acting as a corepressor of JA-responsive MYC2.
