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PLANTS INTERACTING WITH OTHER ORGANISMS

Fungal Symbiosis in Rice Requires an Ortholog of a Legume Common Symbiosis Gene Encoding a Ca²⁺/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase^1,[OA]

Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40546 (C.C., M.G., H.Z.); and Department of Plant Pathology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853 (J.L.)

In natural ecosystems, many plants are able to establish mutually beneficial symbioses with microorganisms. Of critical importance to sustainable agriculture are the symbioses formed between more than 80% of terrestrial plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and between legumes and nitrogen-fixing rhizobial bacteria. Interestingly, the two symbioses share overlapping signaling pathways in legumes, suggesting that the evolutionarily recent root nodule symbiosis may have acquired functions from the ancient AM symbiosis. The Medicago truncatula DMI3 (DOESN'T MAKE INFECTIONS3) gene (MtDMI3) and its orthologs in legumes are required for both bacterial and fungal symbioses. MtDMI3 encodes a Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase (CCaMK) essential for the transduction of the Ca²⁺ signal induced by the perception of Nod factors. Putative orthologs of MtDMI3 are also present in non-legumes, but their function in AM symbiosis has not been demonstrated in any non-legume species. Here, we combine reverse genetic approaches and a cross-species complementation test to characterize the function of the rice (Oryza sativa) ortholog of MtDMI3, namely, OsDMI3, in AM symbiosis. We demonstrate that OsDMI3 is not only required for AM symbiosis in rice but also is able to complement a M. truncatula dmi3 mutant, indicating an equivalent role of MtDMI3 orthologs in non-legumes.

The author responsible for distribution of materials integral to the findings presented in this article in accordance with the policy described in the Instructions for Authors (www.plantphysiol.org) is: Hongyan Zhu (hzhu4{at}uky.edu).

^[OA] Open Access articles can be viewed online without a subscription.

www.plantphysiol.org/cgi/doi/10.1104/pp.107.109876

^* Corresponding author; e-mail hzhu4{at}uky.edu.

Received September 25, 2007; accepted October 23, 2007; published October 26, 2007.