A single transcription factor facilitates an insect host combating Bacillus thuringiensis infection while maintaining fitness

Zhaojiang Guo (), Le Guo, Jianying Qin, Fan Ye, Dan Sun, Qingjun Wu, Shaoli Wang, Neil Crickmore, Xuguo Zhou, Alejandra Bravo, Mario Soberón and Youjun Zhang ()
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Zhaojiang Guo: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Le Guo: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Jianying Qin: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Fan Ye: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Dan Sun: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Qingjun Wu: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Shaoli Wang: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Neil Crickmore: University of Sussex
Xuguo Zhou: University of Kentucky
Alejandra Bravo: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
Mario Soberón: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
Youjun Zhang: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: Abstract Maintaining fitness during pathogen infection is vital for host survival as an excessive response can be as detrimental as the infection itself. Fitness costs are frequently associated with insect hosts countering the toxic effect of the entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), which delay the evolution of resistance to this pathogen. The insect pest Plutella xylostella has evolved a mechanism to resist Bt toxins without incurring significant fitness costs. Here, we reveal that non-phosphorylated and phosphorylated forms of a MAPK-modulated transcription factor fushi tarazu factor 1 (FTZ-F1) can respectively orchestrate down-regulation of Bt Cry1Ac toxin receptors and up-regulation of non-receptor paralogs via two distinct binding sites, thereby presenting Bt toxin resistance without growth penalty. Our findings reveal how host organisms can co-opt a master molecular switch to overcome pathogen invasion with low cost, and contribute to understanding the underlying mechanism of growth-defense tradeoffs during host-pathogen interactions in P. xylostella.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-33706-x

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