Ultrastructural Localization of Hydrogen Peroxide in Host Leaves Treated with AK-toxin I Produced by Alternaria alternata Japanese Pear Pathotype

Abstract

The rapid generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), called the oxidative burst, is one of the earliest host responses to pathogen infection or elicitor treatments. Therefore, we looked for the induction of ROS generation in Japanese pear leaves by the host-specific toxin, AK-toxin I using a cytochemical method for detecting H2O2. A small amount of non-specific generation of H2O2 was found in the cell walls in toxin- and water-treated susceptible and resistant leaves. Thus, the generation of H2O2 at cell walls appears to be caused by wounding stress during sampling. Specific generation of ROS, however, was found only in the membrane fragments and extended desmotubules characteristic of modified sites of the plasma membrane in the toxin-treated susceptible leaves. In addition, generation of H2O2 at plasma membranes was observed with higher frequency in toxin-treated susceptible leaves. This result indicates that the H2O2 generation was associated with damaged sites in the plasmalemma after toxin treatment and perhaps with the formation of membrane fragments from altered portions of the invaginated plasma membrane.