Spatiotemporal regulation of the arbuscular mycorrhiza symbiosis establishment

The arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM), a symbiosis between fungi from the phylum Glomeromycota and nearly 80% of terrestrial plant species. It is characterized by a two-way exchange in which the fungus provides mineral nutrients to the plant in exchange for carbohydrates. However this feeding of the fungus during the symbiotic process represents a significant carbon cost for the plant. To maintain a mutualistic interaction the two symbiotic partners have to strictly control the extent of fungal development in the roots. This control is called autoregulation. Several proteins have been found to be important for the regulation of the different mycorrhizal steps: the stimulation of fungal growth in the rhizosphere by the strigolactones, the fungal entrance in the roots, the hyphal proliferation in the roots and the arbuscule formation. In this work we examine in more detail the role of two of these proteins known to be involved in the mycorrhization process, the transcriptional factors NSP1 and NSP2 (Nodulation Signaling Pathway). We first confirm in M. truncatula roots the direct implication of NSP1 in the regulation of two strigolactone biosynthesis genes, DWARF27 (D27) and MAX1, during the asymbiotic conditions. Then, we show that NSP1, unlike NSP2, is a factor that promotes the fungal entries in the root, presumably due to its activation of D27 and MAX1 resulting in a stimulation of strigolactone synthesis and presymbiotic fungal growth. Next, during the later stages of mycorrhization, we highlight that in the colonized tissues NSP1 is absent and the induction of both D27 and MAX1 is not anymore NSP1 dependent. NSP1 protein is then localized in cells which are not yet colonized but are close to a colonization zone. There, it controls negatively the hyphal propagation in the root and positively the formation of arbuscules. In contrast, NSP2 is present in the colonized tissue where it promotes hyphal propagation and arbuscule development, perhaps by interacting with other proteins. We also show that if NSP1 proteins are absent of the colonized tissues, NSP1 transcripts are present. Unexpectedly, we unveil that in those colonized cells, NSP1 mRNA can protect, by a micro RNA (miR171h) decoy action called target mimicry, NSP2 mRNA against miR171h-mediated degradation. This is the first demonstration that a coding RNA molecule can be a target mimic for a microRNA. In our context this finding reveals a positive regulation of NSP2 expression by NSP1 transcripts and brings to light an additional layer of complexity in the mycorrhizal dual role of these two transcription factors. Finally, in tomato, we highlight that SlNSP1 could be directly or indirectly regulated by the AUX/IAA protein, SlIAA27. As a link with auxin we presume that this AUX/IAA protein is a new component of the signaling pathway controlling AM fungal colonization in tomato, and we propose that it controls strigolactone biosynthesis via the regulation of SlNSP1. Overall our work provides new pieces of the mycorrhizal puzzle and shows how important it is to perform spatiotemporal investigations for a better understanding of highly integrated and complex biological processes.