Arabidopsis Proline Dehydrogenase Contributes to Flagellin-Mediated PAMP-Triggered Immunity by Affecting RBOHD

Plants activate different defense systems to counteract the attack of microbial pathogens. Among them, the recognition of conserved microbial- or pathogen-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs or PAMPs) by pattern-recognition receptors stimulates MAMP- or PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI). In recent years, the elicitors, receptors, and signaling pathways leading to PTI have been extensively studied. However, the contribution of organelles to this program deserves further characterization. Here, we studied how processes altering the mitochondrial electron transport chain (mETC) influence PTI establishment. With particular emphasis, we evaluated the effect of proline dehydrogenase (ProDH), an enzyme that can load electrons into the mETC and regulate the cellular redox state. We found that mETC uncouplers (antimycin or rotenone) and manganese superoxide dismutase deficiency impair flg22-induced responses such as accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and bacterial growth limitation. ProDH mutants also redu...