Regulation of reactive oxygen species production by a 14-3-3 protein in elicited tobacco cells

International audienceThe regulation of the system responsible for the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) during plant–microorganism interaction is still largely unknown. The protein NtrbohD has been recently demonstrated as the plasma membrane oxidase responsible for ROS production in elicited tobacco cells. Here, its C-terminus part was used as a bait in a two-hybrid screen in order to identify putative regulators of this system. This led to the isolation of a cDNA coding for a member of the 14-3-3 protein family. The corresponding transcript was induced after infiltration of tobacco leaves with the fungal elicitor cryptogein. Tobacco cells transformed with an antisense construct of this 14-3-3 no longer accumulated ROS, which constitutes a functional validation of the two-hybrid screen. This work provides new insights to the understanding of the regulation of ROS production in a signalling context and gives a new light to the possible role of 14-3-3 proteins in plant–microorganisms interactions