D. M. Lawson

Molecular switching of a DNA-sliding clamp to a repressor mediates long-range gene silencing

The paper shows that KorB, a DNA-sliding clamp, switches to a repressor role with KorA to mediate long-range gene silencing on plasmid RK2.

Activation of plant immunity through conversion of a helper NLR homodimer into a resistosome

This study shows how the helper NLR NRC2 converts from a homodimer to a higher-order oligomer upon activation by the sensor NLR Rx, revealing the molecular mechanism of plant immune activation.

Bimodular Architecture of Bacterial Effector SAP05 Drives Ubiquitin-Independent Targeted Protein Degradation

This paper reports the crystal structures of SAP05 complexes and reveals their bimodular architecture enabling ubiquitin-independent targeted protein degradation in eukaryotic cells.

Resurrection of plant disease resistance proteins via helper NLR bioengineering

A helper NLR is mutated to evade inhibition by a parasite effector, restoring disease resistance gene activity.

Expansion of the Catalytic Repertoire of Alcohol Dehydrogenases in Plant Metabolism

The paper reports the crystal structure of an ADH enzyme that catalyzes a non-canonical 1,4 reduction, providing insights into how plant ADHs diversify their catalytic functions.

Binding of a blast fungus Zinc-finger fold effector to a hydrophobic pocket in the host exocyst subunit Exo70 modulates immune recognition in rice

This paper reveals how the blast fungus effector AVR-Pii binds to rice Exo70, modulating immune recognition through a novel Zinc-finger fold and conserved hydrophobic interface.

The CTP-binding domain is disengaged from the DNA-binding domain in a co-crystal structure of Bacillus subtilis Noc-DNA complex

The paper solves the structure of a truncated Bacillus subtilis Noc protein bound to NBS DNA, revealing disengagement between its CTP-binding and DNA-binding domains.

A CTP-dependent gating mechanism enables ParB spreading on DNA

This study identifies a CTP-dependent gating mechanism in ParB that regulates its nucleation, spreading, and recycling during chromosome segregation in Caulobacter crescentus.

CTP regulates membrane-binding activity of the nucleoid occlusion protein Noc

This study shows that CTP regulates the membrane-binding activity of the nucleoid occlusion protein Noc in Bacillus subtilis by controlling its ability to form nucleoprotein complexes.

Two NLR immune receptors acquired high-affinity binding to a fungal effector through convergent evolution of their integrated domain

The paper reconstructs the evolutionary history of rice NLR receptors Pik-1 and Pik-2, showing their HMA domain evolved convergent high-affinity binding to the fungal effector AVR-PikD.

Diversification of DNA-binding specificity via permissive and specificity-switching mutations in the ParB/Noc protein family

This study investigates how DNA-binding specificity diversifies in ParB and Noc proteins by identifying key residues and mutational paths that reprogram specificity.