Specific modulation of the root immune system by a community of commensal bacteria
Paulo José Pereira Lima Teixeira, Nicholas R. Colaianni, Theresa F. Law, Jonathan M. Conway, Sarah Gilbert, Haofan Li, Isai Salas-González, Darshana Panda, Nicole M. Del Risco, Omri M. Finkel, Gabriel Castrillo, Piotr A. Mieczkowski, Corbin D. Jones, Jeffery L. Dangl
Abstract
Significance In natural environments, plants establish intimate interactions with a wide diversity of microbes. It is unknown, however, how microbiota composed of commensal bacteria colonize roots in the face of a sophisticated plant immune system that evolved to recognize microbial-associated molecular patterns. We investigate the interaction between plant immune system function and the root microbiota. We report that root-associated commensal bacteria actively suppress the host immune response in the context of a community. Suppressors and nonsuppressors co-occur in the root microbiome and the presence of the former can enhance the colonization ability of the latter. We highlight the role of a specific sector of the plant immune system and its suppression in gating microbial access to the roots.