Evolutionary trajectory of pattern recognition receptors in plants

Abstract

Cell-surface receptors play pivotal roles in many biological processes, including immunity, development, and reproduction, across diverse organisms. How cell-surface receptors evolve to become specialised in different biological processes remains elusive. To shed light on the immune-specificity of cell-surface receptors, we analyzed more than 200,000 genes encoding cell-surface receptors from 350 genomes and traced the evolutionary origin of immune-specific leucine-rich repeat receptor-like proteins (LRR-RLPs) in plants. Surprisingly, we discovered that the motifs crucial for co-receptor interaction in LRR-RLPs are closely related to those of the LRR-receptor-like kinase (RLK) subgroup Xb, which perceives phytohormones and primarily governs growth and development. Functional characterisation further reveals that LRR-RLPs initiate immune responses through their juxtamembrane and transmembrane regions, while LRR-RLK-Xb members regulate development through their cytosolic kinase domains. Our data suggest that the cell-surface receptors involved in immunity and development share a common origin. After diversification, their ectodomains, juxtamembrane, transmembrane, and cytosolic regions have either diversified or stabilised to recognise diverse ligands and activate differential downstream responses. Our work reveals a mechanism by which plants evolve to perceive diverse signals to activate the appropriate responses in a rapidly changing environment.