Inter‐species protein trafficking endows dodder (Cuscuta pentagona) with a host‐specific herbicide‐tolerant trait. Issue 4 (4th April 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jiang, Linjian; Qu, Feng; Li, Zhaohu; Doohan, Douglas
• Is Part Of: New phytologist. Volume 198:Issue 4(2013)
• Page Start: 1017
• Page End: 1022
• Publication Date: 2013-04-04
• Subjects: Botany -- Periodicals; 580
• DOI: 10.1111/nph.12269
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0028-646X

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" id="nph12269-abs-0001"> <title>Summary</title> <p> <list id="nph12269-list-0001" list-type="bullet"> <list-item> <p>Besides photosynthates, dodder (<italic>Cuscuta</italic> spp.) acquires phloem‐mobile proteins from host; however, whether this could mediate inter‐species phenotype transfer was not demonstrated. Specifically, we test whether phosphinothricin acetyl transferase (PAT) that confers host plant glufosinate herbicide tolerance traffics and functions inter‐specifically.</p> </list-item> <list-item> <p>Dodder tendrils excised from hosts can grow <italic>in vitro</italic> for weeks or resume <italic>in vivo</italic> by parasitizing new hosts. The level of PAT in <italic>in vivo</italic> and <italic>in vitro</italic> dodder tendrils was quantified by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay. The glufosinate sensitivity was examined by dipping the distal end of <italic>in vivo</italic> and <italic>in vitro</italic> tendrils, growing on or excised from LibertyLink<sup>®</sup> (LL; PAT‐transgenic and glufosinate tolerant) and conventional (CN; glufosinate sensitive) soybean hosts, into glufosinate solutions for 5 s. After <italic>in vitro</italic> tendrils excised from LL hosts reparasitized new CN and LL hosts, the PAT level and the glufosinate sensitivity were also examined.</p> </list-item> <list-item> <p>When growing on LL host, dodder tolerated glufosinate and contained PAT at a level of 0.3% of that encountered in LL soybean leaf. After PAT was largely degraded in dodders, they became glufosinate sensitive. PAT mRNA was not detected by reverse transcription PCR in dodders.</p> </list-item> <list-item> <p>In conclusion, the results indicated that PAT inter‐species trafficking confers dodder glufosinate tolerance.</p> </list-item> </list> </p> </abstract>