中央研究院 Logo

Recognition and repair of damaged tissues is an integral part of life, which upon failure can cause disease or death (1). The research in my lab focuses on the role of proteases in the plant wound response, where they function as key regulators of immunity and defense signaling. Previous work from our group identified metacaspases, a class of cysteine proteases, as enzymes that cleave small signaling peptides, including known damage-associated molecular patterns, placing proteolysis as a central mechanism in the activation of plant defense (2). Furthermore, we developed several tools to study metacaspase function in vivo, including small molecule inhibitors (3) and genetically encoded proteolysis reporters (4). Notwithstanding, a large knowledge gap exists regarding the involvement of proteolysis in the plant wound response. Therefore, we set out to profile the landscape of damage-activated proteases and their substrates through spatiotemporally resolved N-terminomics of the wound response to physical damage. From these data, I will present some of our ongoing investigations into the potential roles of proteases in defense metabolite production and regeneration. Building on these findings, we are expanding our investigation of damage-activated proteolysis beyond defense signaling to uncover additional proteases, identify their substrates, and elucidate their broader roles in the plant wound response.

References
(1) Vega-Muñoz I, Duran-Flores D, Fernández-Fernández ÁD, Heyman J, Ritter A, Stael S, Breaking Bad News: Dynamic Molecular Mechanisms of Wound Response in Plants, Front. Plant Sci. 2020; 11:610445.
(2) Hander T, Fernández-Fernández ÁD, Kumpf RP, Willems P, Schatowitz H, Rombaut D, Staes A, Nolf J, Pottie R, Yao P, Gonçalves A, Pavie B, Boller T, Gevaert K, Van Breusegem F, Bartels S, Stael S (2019), ´Damage on plants activates Ca2+-dependent metacaspases for release of immunomodulatory peptides´, Science 2019; 22;363(6433).
(3) Stael S, Sabljić I, Audenaert D, Andersson T, Tsiatsiani L, Kumpf RP, Vidal-Albalat A, Lindgren C, Vercammen D, Jacques S, Nguyen L, Njo M, Fernández-Fernández ÁD, Beunens T, Timmerman E, Gevaert K, Van Montagu M, Ståhlberg J, Bozhkov PV, Linusson A, Beeckman T, Van Breusegem F, ´Structure-function study of a Ca2+-independent metacaspase involved in lateral root emergence´, Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2023; 120(22):e2303480120.
(4) Fernández-Fernández ÁD, Tack S, Van Durme M, Pitsili E, Huang J, Nolf J, García RL, Pottie R, Nowack MK, Staal J, Stael S, Van Breusegem F. Shedding light on plant proteolysis: genetically encoded fluorescent sensors as tools for profiling protease activities. Plant Cell. 2026; 38(6):koag162.