Linking metabolic phenotypes to pathogenic traits among "Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus" and its hosts. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas) has been associated with Huanglongbing, a lethal vector-borne disease affecting citrus crops worldwide. While comparative genomics has provided preliminary insights into the metabolic capabilities of this uncultured microorganism, a comprehensive functional characterization is currently lacking. Here, we reconstructed and manually curated genome-scale metabolic models for the six CLas strains A4, FL17, gxpsy, Ishi-1, psy62, and YCPsy, in addition to a model of the closest related culturable microorganism, L. crescens BT-1. Predictions about nutrient requirements and changes in growth phenotypes of CLas were confirmed using in vitro hairy root-based assays, while the L. crescens BT-1 model was validated using cultivation assays. Host-dependent metabolic phenotypes were revealed using expression data obtained from CLas-infected citrus trees and from the CLas-harboring psyllid Diaphorina citri Kuwayama. These results identified conserved and unique metabolic traits, as well as strain-specific interactions between CLas and its hosts, laying the foundation for the development of model-driven Huanglongbing management strategies.

published proceedings

  • NPJ Syst Biol Appl

altmetric score

  • 51.66

author list (cited authors)

  • Zuiga, C., Peacock, B., Liang, B. o., McCollum, G., Irigoyen, S. C., Tec-Campos, D., ... Zengler, K.

citation count

  • 14

complete list of authors

  • Zuñiga, Cristal||Peacock, Beth||Liang, Bo||McCollum, Greg||Irigoyen, Sonia C||Tec-Campos, Diego||Marotz, Clarisse||Weng, Nien-Chen||Zepeda, Alejandro||Vidalakis, Georgios||Mandadi, Kranthi K||Borneman, James||Zengler, Karsten

publication date

  • January 2020