An activated wheat CC<sub>G10</sub>-NLR immune receptor forms an octameric resistosome.

Guo, Guanghao; Zhao, He; Bai, Kaihong; Lu, Jian; Wu, Qiuhong; Lu, Lei; Zhang, Yue; Dong, Lingli et al. · Cell · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Nucleotide-binding, leucine-rich repeat (NLR) receptors are widespread intracellular immune sensors across kingdoms. Plant G10-type coiled-coil (CC<sub>G10</sub>)-NLRs constitute a distinct phylogenetic clade that remains poorly characterized. Here, we identified a gain-of-function mutant of wheat autoimmunity 3 (WAI3<sup>GOF</sup>), which encodes a constitutively active CC<sub>G10</sub>-NLR resulting from a residue substitution in the leucine-rich repeat (LRR) domain. Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) analysis reveals that activated WAI3 assembles into a distinctive octameric resistosome. Arabidopsis RPS2, another CC<sub>G10</sub>-NLR, also forms an octamer, indicating a conserved structural property across monocot and dicot plants. The WAI3 resistosome induces a prolonged and sustained increase in cytosolic calcium, likely facilitated by a unique channel architecture arising from its divergent coiled-coil (CC) domain configuration. Notably, this domain arrangement may be shared by plant NLRs that lack the conserved EDVID (Glu-Asp-Val-Ile-Asp) motif in their CC domains. Together, our findings uncover a conserved yet previously uncharacterized NLR resistosome structure and provide insights into the plant immune receptor plasticity.