Plants establish intricate relationships with microorganisms that range from mutualistic to pathogenic. In order to prevent colonization by potentially harmful microbes, plant hosts employ surface-localized receptor molecules that perceive ligands, which are either microbe-derived or result from microbe-mediated plant manipulation. This recognition...
Disease resistance in crops is an important aspect of securing global food security. Resistant plants carry immune receptors that sense pathogen invasion often through the recognition of important pathogen virulence factors, known as effectors. Thus, identification and characterization of effectors is important for the fundamental understanding of ...
Plant-pathogenic microbes secrete effector molecules to establish disease on their hosts, whereas plants in turn employ immune receptors to try and intercept such effectors in order to prevent pathogen colonization. Based on structure and subcellular location, immune receptors fall into two major classes; cell surface-localized receptors that compr...
Nitrogen is a key element for plant growth. To meet nitrogen demands, some plants establish an endosymbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing rhizobium or Frankia bacteria. This involves formation of specialized root lateral organs, named nodules. These nodules are colonized intracellularly, which creates optimal physiological conditions for the f...
Rice is the most important food crop in the world, feeding over half the world’s population. However, rice water use efficiency, defined by units of yield produced per unit of water used, is the lowest of all crops. The aim of this thesis was to study the effect of plant hormones and the root microbiome on drought tolerance in rice. The new plant h...
Pseudomonas fluorescens is a Gram-negative rod shaped bacterium that has a versatile metabolism and is widely spread in soil and water. P. fluorescens strain SBW25 (Pf.SBW25) is a well-known model strain to study bacterial evolution, plant colonization and biocontrol of plant diseases. It produces the biosurfactant viscosin, a lipopeptide that play...
Pathogens cause disease on both animal and plant hosts. For successful infection and establishment of disease, pathogens need proper weaponry to protect themselves against host defenses and to promote host colonization to facilitate uptake of nutrients for growth and reproduction. Indeed, plant pathogens secrete various types of effector molecules ...
SUMMARY Plants as primary producers in terrestrial ecosystems are under constant threat from a multitude of attackers, which include insect herbivores. In addition to interactions with detrimental organisms, plants host a diversity of beneficial organisms, which include microbes in the rhizosphere. Furthermore, the interactions between plants and s...
Abstract Phytophthora pathogens are notorious for causing severe damage to many agriculturally and ornamentally important plants. Effective plant resistance depends largely on the capacity to perceive pathogens and to activate rapid defence. Cytoplasmic resistance (R) proteins are well-known for activation of plant immunity upon recognition of matc...
Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis (Cmm) is the pathogen causing bacterial canker in tomato. The disease was described for the first time in 1910 in Michigan, USA. Cmmis considered the most harmful bacteria threatening tomato. Disease transmission occurs via seed and symptoms become visible at least 20 days after infection. Due to its c...
