Do 14-3-3 proteins and plasma membrane H⁺-ATPases interact in the barley epidermis in response to the barley powdery mildew fungus?

14-3-3 proteins form a family of highly conserved proteins with central roles in many eukaryotic signalling networks. In plants, they bind to and activate the plasma membrane H+-ATPase, creating a binding site for the phytotoxin fusicoccin. Barley 14-3-3 transcripts accumulate in the epidermis upon inoculation with the powdery mildew fungus. We have isolated a cDNA encoding a plasma membrane H+-ATPase (HvHA1), which is also induced by powdery mildew attack. The C-terminal domain of this H+-ATPase interacts with 14-3-3 proteins in the yeast two-hybrid system. Inoculation with the powdery mildew fungus, or treatment with fusicoccin, results in an increase in fusicoccin binding ability of barley leaf membranes. Overlay assays show a fungus-induced increase in binding of digoxygenin-labelled 14-3-3 protein to several proteins including a 100 kDa membrane protein, probably the plasma membrane H+-ATPase. These effects are seen specifically in the inoculated epidermis and not in the whole leaf. We propose that 14-3-3 proteins are involved in an epidermis-specific response to the powdery mildew fungus, possibly via an activation of the plasma membrane H+-ATPase.