Subcellular Responses in Nonhost Plant Infected with Pathogenic and Non-pathogenic Strains of Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. glycines

Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. glycines, the causal agent of bacterial pustule of soybean, induces hypersensitive response (HR) in a non-host plant, hot pepper (Capsicum annuum). A wild-type strain (8ra) and its non-patho-genic mutant (8-13) of X. axonopodis pv. glycines were inoculated into the pepper leaf tissues and their subcellular responses to the bacterial infections were examined by electron microscopy. Intrastructural changes related to HR were found in the leaf tissues infected with 8ra from 8 h after inoculation, characterized by separation of plasmalemma from the cell wall, formation of small vacuoles and vesicles, formation of cell wall apposition, and cellular necrosis. No such responses were observed in the tissues infected with the mutant. In 8ra, the bacterial cells were attached to the cell walls, with the cell wall material dissolved into and appearing to encapsulate the bacterial cells. The bacterial cells later became entirely embedded in the cell wall material. On the other hand, in 8-13, the bacterial cells were usually not attached tightly to the plant cell wall, and no or poor encapsulation of the bacteria by the wall material occurred, although these were encircled by rather loose wall materials at the later stages.