Structural basis of unique ligand specificity of KAI2-like protein from parasitic weed Striga hermonthica

Structural basis of unique ligand specificity of KAI2-like protein from parasitic weed Striga hermonthica

The perception of two plant germination inducers, karrikins and strigolactones, are mediated by the proteins KAI2 and D14. Recently, KAI2-type proteins from parasitic weeds, which are possibly related to seed germination induced by strigolactone, have been classified into three clades characterized by different responses to karrikin/strigolactone. Here we characterized a karrikin-binding protei...

Horizontal gene transfer by the parasitic plant Striga hermonthica.

Horizontal gene transfer has been postulated to occur between crops to co-occurring parasitic plants, but empirical evidence has been lacking. We present evidence that an HGT event moved a nuclear monocot gene into the genome of the eudicot parasite witchweed (Striga hermonthica), which infects many grass species in Africa. Analysis of expressed sequence tags revealed that the genome of S. herm...

Structural basis for multiple ligand specificity of the periplasmic lysine-, arginine-, ornithine-binding protein.

The substrate-binding site of a protein with multiple specificity should satisfy geometric and energetic complementarity for several different substrates. The structural basis of the multiple ligand specificity of the periplasmic lysine-, arginine-, ornithine-binding protein (LAO) was investigated by determining and analyzing the structures of the protein unliganded and liganded with each of th...

Genetic Diversity of Striga hermonthica Populations in Ethiopia: Evaluating the Role of Geography and Host Specificity in Shaping Population Structure

Virulence Study of Striga hermonthica Populations from Tigray Region (Northern Ethiopia)

Striga hermonthica is a severe problem in the cereal growing regions of Northern Ethiopia. Nineteen Striga population samples were evaluated for their virulence against two resistant sorghum varieties currently being promoted for use in the area using an in vitro system. Nine out of the 19 populations tested were able to attack the resistant sorghum varieties (SRN 39 and P-9401). Most of the hi...