小柯机器人

英国诺丁汉大学David E. Salt，Gabriel Castrillo和中国科学院分子植物科学卓越研究中心Dai-Yin Chao共同合作，近期取得重要工作进展。他们研究发现了一种直接蛋白复合物，这种复合物能够指导木质素的聚合和根扩散屏障的组装。相关研究成果2023年10月27日在线发表于《科学》杂志上。

据介绍，在功能上类似于动物肠道中存在的紧密连接，植物根已经演化出木质化的卡斯帕林带，作为内皮层中的细胞外扩散屏障，以密封根质外体并维持营养稳态。这种扩散屏障的结构已经部分确定，但其木质素聚合和组装步骤仍然难以捉摸。

研究人员表征了一个直接蛋白家族（DP），该家族对细胞壁中卡斯帕林带生物发生所需的木质素的局部聚合和将带附着到质膜以密封质外体都是必不可少的。

总之，研究人员揭示了一种卡斯帕里亚带木质化机制，需要DP和申根途径之间的合作，且DP直接介导木质素聚合是该机制的一部分。

附：英文原文

Title: A dirigent protein complex directs lignin polymerization and assembly of the root diffusion barrier

Author: Yi-Qun Gao, Jin-Quan Huang, Guilhem Reyt, Tao Song, Ashley Love, David Tiemessen, Pei-Ying Xue, Wen-Kai Wu, Michael W. George, Xiao-Ya Chen, Dai-Yin Chao, Gabriel Castrillo, David E. Salt

Issue&Volume: 2023-10-27

Abstract: Functionally similar to the tight junctions present in animal guts, plant roots have evolved a lignified Casparian strip as an extracellular diffusion barrier in the endodermis to seal the root apoplast and maintain nutrient homeostasis. How this diffusion barrier is structured has been partially defined, but its lignin polymerization and assembly steps remain elusive. Here, we characterize a family of dirigent proteins (DPs) essential for both the localized polymerization of lignin required for Casparian strip biogenesis in the cell wall and for attachment of the strip to the plasma membrane to seal the apoplast. We reveal a Casparian strip lignification mechanism that requires cooperation between DPs and the Schengen pathway. Furthermore, we demonstrate that DPs directly mediate lignin polymerization as part of this mechanism.

DOI: adi5032

Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adi5032