Nonredundant functions of Arabidopsis LecRK-V.2 and LecRK-VII.1 in controlling stomatal immunity and jasmonate-mediated stomatal closure

Stomatal immunity restricts bacterial entry to leaves through the recognition of microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs) by pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs) and downstream abscisic acid and salicylic acid signaling. Through a reverse genetics approach, we characterized the function of the L-type lectin receptor kinase-V.2 (LecRK-V.2) and -VII.1 (LecRK-VII.1). Analyses of interactions with the PRR FLAGELLIN SENSING2 (FLS2) were performed by co-immunoprecipitation and bimolecular fluorescence complementation and whole-cell patch-clamp analyses were used to evaluate guard cell Ca2+-permeable cation channels. The Arabidopsis thaliana LecRK-V.2 and LecRK-VII.1 and notably their kinase activities were required for full activation of stomatal immunity. Knockout lecrk-V.2 and lecrk-VII.1 mutants were hyper-susceptible to Pseudomonas syringae infection and showed defective stomatal closure in response to bacteria or to the MAMPs flagellin and EF-Tu. By contrast, Arabidopsis over-expressing LecRK-V.2 or LecRK-VII.1 demonstrated a potentiated stomatal immunity. LecRK-V.2 and LecRK-VII.1 are shown to be part of the FLS2 PRR complex. In addition, LecRK-V.2 and LecRK-VII.1 were critical for methyl jasmonate (MeJA)-mediated stomatal closure, notably for MeJA-induced activation of guard cell Ca2+-permeable cation channels. This study highlights the role of LecRK-V.2 and LecRK-VII.1 in stomatal immunity at the FLS2 PRR complex and in MeJA-mediated stomatal closure.