Plant cell walls are a critical site where plants and pathogens continuously struggle for physiological dominance. Here we show that dynamic remodeling of pectin methylesterification of plant cell walls is a component of the physiological and co-evolutionary struggles between hosts and pathogens. A pectin methylesterase (PsPME1) secreted by decreases the degree of pectin methylesterification, thus synergizing with an endo-polygalacturonase (PsPG1) to weaken plant cell walls. To counter PsPME1-mediated susceptibility, a plant-derived pectin methylesterase inhibitor protein, GmPMI1, protects pectin to maintain a high methylesterification status. GmPMI1 protects plant cell walls from enzymatic degradation by inhibiting both soybean and pectin methylesterases during infection. However, constitutive expression of disrupted the trade-off between host growth and defense responses. We therefore used AlphaFold structure tools to design a modified form of GmPMI1 (GmPMI1R) that specifically targets and inhibits pectin methylesterases secreted from pathogens but not from plants. Transient expression of enhanced plant resistance to oomycete and fungal pathogens. In summary, our work highlights the biochemical modification of the cell wall as an important focal point in the physiological and co-evolutionary conflict between hosts and microbes, providing an important proof of concept that AI-driven structure-based tools can accelerate the development of new strategies for plant protection.

中文翻译：

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AlphaFold 引导下重新设计植物果胶甲酯酶抑制剂，以实现广谱抗病性


植物细胞壁是植物和病原体不断争夺生理优势的关键场所。在这里，我们表明植物细胞壁果胶甲基酯化的动态重塑是宿主和病原体之间生理和共同进化斗争的一个组成部分。分泌的果胶甲基酯酶（PsPME1）可降低果胶甲基酯化程度，从而与内切多聚半乳糖醛酸酶（PsPG1）协同作用，削弱植物细胞壁。为了对抗 PsPME1 介导的敏感性，植物源性果胶甲基酯酶抑制剂蛋白 GmPMI1 可保护果胶维持高甲基酯化状态。 GmPMI1 通过在感染过程中抑制大豆和果胶甲酯酶来保护植物细胞壁免受酶促降解。然而，组成型表达破坏了宿主生长和防御反应之间的权衡。因此，我们使用 AlphaFold 结构工具设计了一种修饰形式的 GmPMI1 (GmPMI1R)，它专门针对和抑制病原体而非植物分泌的果胶甲酯酶。增强植物对卵菌和真菌病原体的抗性的瞬时表达。总之，我们的工作强调了细胞壁的生化修饰是宿主和微生物之间生理和共同进化冲突的重要焦点，为人工智能驱动的基于结构的工具可以加速细胞的开发提供了重要的概念证明。植物保护新策略。