Interaction Between the Membrane Protein of a Pathogen and Insect Microfilament Complex Determines Insect-vector Specificity.
From: Laboratory of Plant Pathology, Department of Agricultural and Environmental Biology, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
- Publish Date: Mar 2006
- ISSN: 0027-8424
- Volume: 103
- Issue: 11
- Pages: 4252-7
- Medium: Print
- Language: English
- Citation (JAMA): Suzuki Shiho, Oshima Kenro, Kakizawa Shigeyuki, et al. Interaction Between the Membrane Protein of a Pathogen and Insect Microfilament Complex Determines Insect-vector Specificity.. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. Mar 2006;103:4252-7
Abstract
Many insect-transmissible pathogens are transmitted by specific insect species and not by others, even if they are closely related. The molecular mechanisms underlying such strict pathogen-insect specificity are poorly understood. Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris, OY strain, line W (OY), is a phytopathogenic bacterium transmitted from plant to plant by sap-feeding insect vectors (leafhoppers). Our study focused on an abundant cell-surface membrane protein of the phytoplasma named antigenic membrane protein (Amp), which is not homologous with any reported functional protein. Immunofluorescence microscopy of the phytoplasma-infected insect showed that OY phytoplasma was localized to the microfilaments of the visceral smooth muscle surrounding the insect’s intestinal tract. The affinity column assay showed that Amp forms a complex with three insect proteins: actin, myosin heavy chain, and myosin light chain. Amp-microfilament complexes were detected in all OY-transmitting leafhopper species, but not in the non-OY-transmitting leafhoppers, suggesting that the formation of the Amp-microfilament complex is correlated with the phytoplasma-transmitting capability of leafhoppers. Although several studies have reported interactions between pathogens and mammalian microfilaments, this is an example of host-specific interactions between a bacterial surface protein and a host microfilament in insect cells. Our data also suggest that the utilization of a host microfilament may be a universal system for pathogenic bacteria infecting mammals or insects.
Mesh Headings (Keywords): Actins, Animals, Bacterial Proteins, Base Sequence, Cloning, Molecular, DNA, Complementary, Genes, Insect, Hemiptera, Insect Proteins, Insect Vectors, Membrane Proteins, Microfilaments, Multiprotein Complexes, Myosins, Phytoplasma, Plant Diseases, Species Specificity, Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization
Check for Full Text / PubMed Unique Identifier (PMID): 16537517
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