http://www.pnas.org/content/107/41/17651.abstract
Etienne G. J. Danchin, Marie-Noelle Rosso, Paulo Vieira, Janice de Almeida-Engler, Pedro M. Coutinho, Bernard Henrissat, Pierre Abad. Multiple lateral gene transfers and duplications have promoted plant parasitism ability in nematodes // PNAS October 12, 2010 vol. 107 no. 41 17651-17656.
Multiple lateral gene transfers and duplications have promoted plant parasitism ability in nematodes
Author Affiliations
aInstitut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unité Mixte de Recherche 1301, Intéractions Biotiques et Santé Végétale, F-06903 Sophia-Antipolis, France; and
bCentre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unité Mixte de Recherche 6098, Architecture et Fonction des Macromolécules Biologiques, Universités Aix-Marseille I and II, F-13009 Marseille, France
Edited* by Jeffrey I. Gordon, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, and approved August 31, 2010 (received for review June 18, 2010)
Lateral gene transfer from prokaryotes to animals is poorly understood, and the scarce documented examples generally concern genes of uncharacterized role in the receiver organism. In contrast, in plant-parasitic nematodes, several genes, usually not found in animals and similar to bacterial homologs, play essential roles for successful parasitism. Many of these encode plant cell wall-degrading enzymes that constitute an unprecedented arsenal in animals in terms of both abundance and diversity. Here we report that independent lateral gene transfers from different bacteria, followed by gene duplications and early gain of introns, have shaped this repertoire. We also show protein immunolocalization data that suggest additional roles for some of these cell wall-degrading enzymes in the late stages of these parasites’ life cycle. Multiple functional acquisitions of exogenous genes that provide selective advantage were probably crucial for the emergence and proficiency of plant parasitism in nematodes.