Plant polypeptides as natural enhancers of biostimulation
Contact person: Simona Maria Monti, simonamaria.monti
cnr.it
Actors: Simona Maria Monti, simonamaria.monticnr.it, Emma Langella, emma.langellacnr.it, Martina Buonanno, martina.buonannocnr.it,
Research areas: Macromolecules for biomedical and biotechnological applications, Small molecules and peptides/modified peptides for diagnostic, therapeutic and biotechnological applications,
Keywords: Prosystemin, Biotic And Abiotic Stress, Plant Defence, Food And Health, Intrinsically Disordered Protein
Contact person: Simona Maria Monti, simonamaria.monti
cnr.itActors: Simona Maria Monti, simonamaria.monti
cnr.it, Emma Langella, emma.langellacnr.it, Martina Buonanno, martina.buonannocnr.it, Description:
Plants cannot escape adverse environmental changes and have developed very efficient defense responses against stress agents. The molecular mechanisms underlying defense responses against insect attack are activated locally, at the damaged site, and promote a long-distance signaling largely modulated by jasmonic acid. Wound damage results both in local and systemic expression of proteinase inhibitors(PIs), disrupting the digestion of feeding insects. In tomato, these events are triggered by a peptide hormone named Systemin. The signaling molecule is an octadeca peptide intensely investigated over the years which, upon wounding, is released from the C-terminal region of a larger pro-hormone of 200 amino acids called Prosystemin (Prosys). Prosys gene is transcribed at low level in physiological conditions, while its expression is enhanced by mechanical wounding or feeding by herbivore insects. The observation that Prosys elicits multiple defense pathways to protect tomato plants against a wide range of stress agent suggested that it could play a role in plant defense broader than expected. Bymeans of biochemical and in silico studies we performed a structural and biochemical characterization of Prosys which provedthat it is a member of the Intrinsically Disordered Proteins (IDPs) family.IDPs are a class of proteins completely or only partially unstructured but still functionally active. These results, which contribute to increase theunderstanding of the multiple roles of Prosys in the defense mechanisms, pavethe way for innovative crop protection for sustainable agriculture with beneficial effects on human health.
Plants cannot escape adverse environmental changes and have developed very efficient defense responses against stress agents. The molecular mechanisms underlying defense responses against insect attack are activated locally, at the damaged site, and promote a long-distance signaling largely modulated by jasmonic acid. Wound damage results both in local and systemic expression of proteinase inhibitors(PIs), disrupting the digestion of feeding insects. In tomato, these events are triggered by a peptide hormone named Systemin. The signaling molecule is an octadeca peptide intensely investigated over the years which, upon wounding, is released from the C-terminal region of a larger pro-hormone of 200 amino acids called Prosystemin (Prosys). Prosys gene is transcribed at low level in physiological conditions, while its expression is enhanced by mechanical wounding or feeding by herbivore insects. The observation that Prosys elicits multiple defense pathways to protect tomato plants against a wide range of stress agent suggested that it could play a role in plant defense broader than expected. Bymeans of biochemical and in silico studies we performed a structural and biochemical characterization of Prosys which provedthat it is a member of the Intrinsically Disordered Proteins (IDPs) family.IDPs are a class of proteins completely or only partially unstructured but still functionally active. These results, which contribute to increase theunderstanding of the multiple roles of Prosys in the defense mechanisms, pavethe way for innovative crop protection for sustainable agriculture with beneficial effects on human health.
Selected papers:
Prosystemin, a prohormone that modulates plant defensebarriers, is an intrinsically disordered protein.
Protein Sci. 2018Mar;27(3):620-632.
Plant polypeptides as natural enhancers of biostimulation
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