PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Katayama, Shiori AU - Shiraishi, Kosuke AU - Kaji, Kanae AU - Kawabata, Kazuya AU - Tamura, Naoki AU - Tani, Akio AU - Yurimoto, Hiroya AU - Sakai, Yasuyoshi TI - Methanol chemoreceptor MtpA- and flagellin protein FliC-dependent methylotaxis determines the spaciotemporal colonization of PPFM in the phyllosphere AID - 10.1101/2024.08.24.609498 DP - 2024 Jan 01 TA - bioRxiv PG - 2024.08.24.609498 4099 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2024/10/01/2024.08.24.609498.short 4100 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2024/10/01/2024.08.24.609498.full AB - Pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophs (PPFMs) capable of growth on methanol are dominant and versatile phyllosphere bacteria that provide positive effects on plant growth through symbiosis. However, the spatiotemporal behavior of PPFMs on plant surfaces and its molecular basis are unknown. Here we show that Methylobacterium sp. strain OR01 inoculated onto red perilla seeds colonized across the entire plant surface in the phyllosphere concomitant with the plant growth. FliC flagellin proteins required for motility were necessary for distributed colonization on plant leaves, but not for colonization at the leaf periphery. Methanol-sensing chemoreceptor MtpA-dependent chemotaxis (methylotaxis; chemotaxis toward methanol) facilitated the bacterial movement from the peripheral to the inner part of leaves and further entry into the stomatal cavity, indicating that methanol functions as a volatile messenger attracting PPFMs to particular leaf locations possibly to support with photosynthesis and to afford protection from pathogenic invasion.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.