Review: The role of water in plant-microbe interactions ($)

Water, a principal component on earth has also a fundamental role in maintenance of plants, microbes and the disease that is shaped by such interaction. Pathogenic disease outbreaks occur only in favorable environmental conditions, and atmospheric humidity is essential for pathogenesis. This review by Aung et al. provides a broad overview on the importance of water availability in host-microbe interactions including the effect of water on interactions between rhizosphere or phyllosphere microbes and the host, and on inducing stomatal defense. The second part of the review highlights the effect of water on microbes after entering the host, as seen in pathogenic bacteria Pseudomonas, by creating an aqueous environment in the apoplast. The work includes aspects of host fitness that are dependent on humidity e.g., R- gene mediated hypersensitive response, plant resistance under drought, and microbial-mediated drought tolerance in plants. Hence this work covers a new emerging aspect in host-microbe interaction biology.  (Summary by Amey Redkar) Plant J.  10.1111/tpj.13795