Cell wall

Apoplast

Arabidopsis

Effector

Biology

Microbiology

Gene

Mutant

Pathogen

Abscisic acid

Pseudomonas syringae

Botany

Cell biology

Biochemistry

Virulence

Cell Host & Microbe

Pseudomonas syringae induces “water soaking” in the apoplastic space of the plant leaf to facilitate infection. Hu et al. discover the underlying mechanisms, revealing that P. syringae effector AvrE targets TOPP proteins to perturb the plant abscisic acid pathway and induce stomatal movement, thus creating this aqueous environment.

Bacterial effectors manipulate plant abscisic acid signaling for creation of an aqueous apoplast