VAMEAP | Virulence Activities of the Metalloprotease Effector AVR-Pita from the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae

Summary
Plant diseases are a major constraint on food production. To rationally design efficient and resilient disease control strategies, it is essential to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying pathogen virulence. Most pathogens rely on secreted proteins called effectors to manipulate the host machinery for their benefit and perform their life cycle. In VAMEAP, we propose to characterize the virulence activities of the metalloprotease effector AVR-Pita from Magnaporthe oryzae, the causal agent of rice blast disease. Despite a strong selection pressure against this effector, AVR-Pita is maintained in populations of the pathogen suggesting a crucial role for the fitness of M. oryzae. Yet, next to nothing is known about the virulence activities or host targets of AVR-Pita. Here we propose an ambitious combination of biochemical and functional approaches to bridge this knowledge gap. We will survey the natural diversity and sequence polymorphisms in AVR-Pita and investigate the impact of its loss on the fitness of M. oryzae. We will identify the virulence targets of AVR-Pita using protein-protein interaction screens and characterize the protease activity of this effector. Beyond the knowledge that this project will gather on AVR-Pita, it will also help to understand the biology of metalloprotease effectors commonly found in fungal pathogens. The multidisciplinary approach developed in this project will be a powerful tool to further understand fungal virulence and help design new resistance strategies to control fungal crop diseases.
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More information & hyperlinks
Web resources: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/896153
Start date: 04-01-2021
End date: 03-01-2023
Total budget - Public funding: 184 707,84 Euro - 184 707,00 Euro
Cordis data

Original description

Plant diseases are a major constraint on food production. To rationally design efficient and resilient disease control strategies, it is essential to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying pathogen virulence. Most pathogens rely on secreted proteins called effectors to manipulate the host machinery for their benefit and perform their life cycle. In VAMEAP, we propose to characterize the virulence activities of the metalloprotease effector AVR-Pita from Magnaporthe oryzae, the causal agent of rice blast disease. Despite a strong selection pressure against this effector, AVR-Pita is maintained in populations of the pathogen suggesting a crucial role for the fitness of M. oryzae. Yet, next to nothing is known about the virulence activities or host targets of AVR-Pita. Here we propose an ambitious combination of biochemical and functional approaches to bridge this knowledge gap. We will survey the natural diversity and sequence polymorphisms in AVR-Pita and investigate the impact of its loss on the fitness of M. oryzae. We will identify the virulence targets of AVR-Pita using protein-protein interaction screens and characterize the protease activity of this effector. Beyond the knowledge that this project will gather on AVR-Pita, it will also help to understand the biology of metalloprotease effectors commonly found in fungal pathogens. The multidisciplinary approach developed in this project will be a powerful tool to further understand fungal virulence and help design new resistance strategies to control fungal crop diseases.

Status

TERMINATED

Call topic

MSCA-IF-2019

Update Date

28-04-2024
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Horizon 2020
H2020-EU.1. EXCELLENT SCIENCE
H2020-EU.1.3. EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
H2020-EU.1.3.2. Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
H2020-MSCA-IF-2019
MSCA-IF-2019