Open AccessA phage display‐selected peptide inhibitor of A grobacterium vitis polygalacturonase
Author(s) -
Warren Jeremy G.,
Kasun George W.,
Leonard Takara,
Kirkpatrick Bruce C.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
molecular plant pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.945
H-Index - 103
eISSN - 1364-3703
pISSN - 1464-6722
DOI - 10.1111/mpp.12293
Subject(s) - pectinase , biology , agrobacterium tumefaciens , phage display , gene , microbiology and biotechnology , biochemistry , enzyme , peptide , transgene
Summary A grobacterium vitis , the causal agent of crown gall of grapevine, is a threat to viticulture worldwide. A major virulence factor of this pathogen is polygalacturonase, an enzyme that degrades pectin components of the xylem cell wall. A single gene encodes for the polygalacturonase gene. Disruption of the polygalacturonase gene results in a mutant that is less pathogenic and produces significantly fewer root lesions on grapevines. Thus, the identification of peptides or proteins that could inhibit the activity of polygalacturonase could be part of a strategy for the protection of plants against this pathogen. A phage‐displayed combinatorial peptide library was used to isolate peptides with a high binding affinity to A . vitis polygalacturonase. These peptides showed sequence similarity to regions of O ryza sativa ( EMS 66324, Japonica) and T riticum urartu ( NP _001054402, wild wheat) polygalacturonase‐inhibiting proteins ( PGIPs ). Furthermore, these panning experiments identified a peptide, SVTIHHLGGGS , which was able to reduce A . vitis polygalacturonase activity by 35% in vitro . Truncation studies showed that the IHHL motif alone is sufficient to inhibit A . vitis polygalacturonase activity.