Plant Defense Priming Mechanisms
Summary
Plant defence priming is an adaptive phenomenon in which an initial stimulus leads to a heightened state of readiness in the plant immune system, enabling a more rapid and robust response upon subsequent challenges. This preparatory state does not itself confer full defence but enhances sensitivity to elicitors, resulting in amplified production of antimicrobial compounds, rapid activation of signalling cascades and efficient resource allocation. Primed plants often display coordinated reprogramming of gene expression, metabolic shifts and epigenetic modifications, which can persist locally, systemically and, in some cases, transgenerationally. Key priming cues include microbial molecular patterns, synthetic activators and endogenous metabolites, each engaging convergent pathways involving salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, ethylene and abscisic acid. Advances in high-resolution omics and chromatin profiling have revealed that priming relies on transcriptional networks and chromatin remodelling to orchestrate cell wall reinforcement, phytoalexin biosynthesis and hormonal crosstalk. Exploiting defence priming holds promise for enhancing crop resilience, reducing chemical inputs and promoting sustainable agriculture worldwide.
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Plant Defense Priming Mechanisms publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in plant defense priming mechanisms across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Priming: A physiological state in which prior exposure to a stimulus enhances the speed and magnitude of subsequent defence responses.
Microbe-associated molecular pattern (MAMP): Conserved microbial molecules recognised by plant receptors to trigger innate immune responses.
Systemic Acquired Resistance (SAR): A plant-wide defence mechanism leading to enhanced immunity in uninfected tissues following local pathogen exposure.
β-aminobutyric acid (BABA): A non-protein amino acid that acts as a chemical elicitor to prime multiple defence pathways.
Transcriptome: The complete set of RNA transcripts produced by the genome under specific conditions.
Epigenetic Modification: Heritable changes in gene expression without alteration of the DNA sequence, often via chromatin remodelling.
References
- Priming grapevine with lipopolysaccharide confers systemic resistance to Pierce's disease and identifies a peroxidase linked to defense priming. New Phytologist (2023).
- BABA-induced pathogen resistance: a multi-omics analysis of the tomato response reveals a hyper-receptive status involving ethylene. Horticulture Research (2023).
- Master Regulatory Transcription Factors in β-Aminobutyric Acid-Induced Resistance (BABA-IR): A Perspective on Phytohormone Biosynthesis and Signaling in Arabidopsis thaliana and Hordeum vulgare. International Journal of Molecular Sciences (2024).
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