ArticlePLoS biology2014
Phytoplasma effector SAP54 hijacks plant reproduction by degrading MADS-box proteins and promotes insect colonization in a RAD23-dependent manner.
Article in PLoS biology, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 117 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
117 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 252 citations in OpenAlex.
- EffectorK, a comprehensive resource to mine for Ralstonia, Xanthomonas, and other published effector interactors in the Arabidopsis proteome.Molecular plant pathology · 2020Pooled it
- The pathogenic effector PHYL1The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology · 2026Article
- The phytoplasma effector, phyllogen, structurally mimics host plant MADS transcription factors.The Journal of biological chemistry · 2026Article
- The zig-zag model of molecular defense and counterdefense in plant-herbivore interactions.Planta · 2026Review
- Phytoplasma Effector SJP8 Suppresses Host Immunity by Promoting the Degradation of ZjMYB15 and ZjMYB86-like to Perturb Jasmonic Acid and Hydrogen Peroxide Homeostasis in Jujube.Molecular plant pathology · 2026Article
- A Virus-Inducible E3-RLCK-MADS Module Coordinates Suppression of Plant Immunity and Fertility in Rice.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Cold-responsive interaction between MdRAD23D1 and MdMYB15 confers cold stress tolerance via the CBF pathway in apple (Malus domestica).PLoS genetics · 2026Article
- Tomato ubiquitinome in response to 'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum' haplotypes A and B.Crop health · 2026Article
- Roles of MADS-box transcription factors in plant responses to abiotic and biotic stresses.Plant communications · 2026Review
- Genomic landscape reveals the dominance of self-catalytic, high-copy group II introns in PMU-deficient complete genomes of PWB phytoplasmas.Journal of microbiology (Seoul, Korea) · 2026Article
- Integrated analysis of ATAC-seq and RNA-seq reveals the TCP-ARF molecular module related to pathogenic process of phytoplasma infection in Paulownia fortunei.BMC genomics · 2026Article
- Microbial diversity of plant pathogens and insect endosymbionts in Reptalus artemisiae.BMC microbiology · 2026Article
- Comparative genomics of a poinsettia-associated phytoplasma and functional validation of its SAP11-homologous effectors that induce plant branching.Microbial genomics · 2026Article
- An In Vitro Ubiquitination Assay to Study Phytoplasmal Effector Function.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2026Article
- Extended phenotype of phytoplasmas in eukaryotic systems: mechanisms and ecological implications.Frontiers in plant science · 2026Review
- Article
- Effector innovation in genome-reduced phytoplasmas and other host-dependent mollicutes.PLoS genetics · 2025Article
- Gatekeepers and Gatecrashers of the Symplasm: Cross-Kingdom Effector Manipulation of Plasmodesmata in Plants.Plants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- A witches' broom phytoplasma effector induces stunting by stabilizing a bHLH transcription factor in Ziziphus jujuba plants.The New phytologist · 2025Article
- Comparison of Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus-Induced Gene Expression Pattern in Tomato and Tobacco Plants.The plant pathology journal · 2025Article
57 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Pathogens that rely upon multiple hosts to complete their life cycles often modify behavior and development of these hosts to coerce them into improving pathogen fitness. However, few studies describe mechanisms underlying host coercion. In this study, we elucidate the mechanism by which an insect-transmitted pathogen of plants alters floral development to convert flowers into vegetative tissues. We find that phytoplasma produce a novel effector protein (SAP54) that interacts with members of the MADS-domain transcription factor (MTF) family, including key regulators SEPALLATA3 and APETALA1, that occupy central positions in the regulation of floral development. SAP54 mediates degradation of MTFs by interacting with proteins of the RADIATION SENSITIVE23 (RAD23) family, eukaryotic proteins that shuttle substrates to the proteasome. Arabidopsis rad23 mutants do not show conversion of flowers into leaf-like tissues in the presence of SAP54 and during phytoplasma infection, emphasizing the importance of RAD23 to the activity of SAP54. Remarkably, plants with SAP54-induced leaf-like flowers are more attractive for colonization by phytoplasma leafhopper vectors and this colonization preference is dependent on RAD23. An effector that targets and suppresses flowering while simultaneously promoting insect herbivore colonization is unprecedented. Moreover, RAD23 proteins have, to our knowledge, no known roles in flower development, nor plant defence mechanisms against insects. Thus SAP54 generates a short circuit between two key pathways of the host to alter development, resulting in sterile plants, and promotes attractiveness of these plants to leafhopper vectors helping the obligate phytoplasmas reproduce and propagate (zombie plants).
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.