Tag: Biotic Interactions

NLR (Nucleotide-binding site leucine-rich repeat resistance) genes help plants recognize pathogens. Munch et al. looked at expression pattern data of 1,235 NLRs from nine plant species. The distribution of NLR gene expression between shoot and root is relatively constant within a species, and for most…

Rust fungi represent an important group of plant pathogens, many of which have heteroecious lifestyles (meaning that they require two alternate hosts). However, the molecular mechanisms used by these pathogens for suppression and colonization of multiple hosts are poorly understood.  Lorrain et al.…

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane-released structures that play a role in cell-to-cell communication. These vesicles in plants have been poorly studied although they are predicted to have a role in defense upon pathogen infection. Regente et al. have characterized EVs from sunflower by transmission…

Remodeling of the actin network in plant cells involves the severing, depolymerization and polymerization of F-actin.  A variety of actin-binding proteins are involved in remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton, including the actin-depolymerizing factor (ADF) family of proteins. As a result of their ability…

It might sound odd, but so far it was hard to find a nice pathogen infecting model legume plants. Fuechtbauer and colleagues showed the capacity of an oomycete (Phytophtora palmivora) to infect Lotus japonicus and describe how a LysM receptor, LYS12, is partly mediating this plant-microbe interaction.…

Plants are attacked by diverse herbivores but have also evolved strategies to resist them. However, highly adapted herbivores exist, including those that have evolved the ability to stabilize, sequester and reactivate plant toxins. This evolved trait has contributed to herbivore defense against higher…

Huot et al. describe how elevated temperature (30 °C) enhances Arabidopsis thaliana disease susceptibility to the bacteria Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 (Pst DC3000): this includes an increase of bacterial type III secretion suggesting that increased Pst DC3000 virulence at 30°C is linked…

Plasmodesmata are plasma membrane-enclosed pores between cells that were initially described by Tangl in 1879 as ‘open communications’ between protoplasts of endosperm cells. These structures are regulated by callose deposition from the apoplast and play an important regulatory role in stress and…