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Molecular Plant Microbe Interaction : Evolution Of Plant Pathogens Essay

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BIOSCI 751 – Molecular Plant Microbe Interaction
Evolution of plant pathogens

Introduction: Plant and microbial interactions are present right from the establishment of land plants. The plants have co-evolved with the microbes since then (Gehrig et al., 1996). A microbial interaction with the plant can have both positive and negative effects on the plant. Due to this, it has gained high agronomic importance in today’s plant science research (Stacey et al., 1996).

Plant Immune System: A pathogen in order to invade the host plant should pass through the various plant immune system. The plants lack the adaptive immune system and have only the first line of defence. Plants have Pathogen Recognition Receptors (PRRs) that recognize the Pathogen Associated Molecular Patterns (PAMPs). This triggers the PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI). PTI can halt the pathogen from further colonization by activating the disease resistant R protein. In response to the host immunity some pathogens (for example bacteria) are capable of producing effector proteins that will enhance the pathogen virulence. These effectors can disrupt the PTI and induce Effector-triggered susceptibility (ETS). Plants have special receptors called Nucleotide Binding-Leucine Rich Repeats (NB-LRRs) that can recognize the effector proteins specifically. This results in the Effector Mediated Immunity (ETI). The ETI results in the Hypersensitive Reaction (HR) that results in the localized cell death at the

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