This book presents the ways and means to switch on plant immune signaling systems using PAMP-PIMP-PRR signaling complex for crop disease management. It also describes bioengineering approaches to develop transgenic plants expressing enhanced disease resistance using genes encoding PAMPs, PRRs and transcription factors and genes involved in generation of PIMPs/HAMPs. It also discusses recent commercial development of PAMP products to switch on plant innate immunity for crop disease management. These unique approaches have been described with more than 100 figures and illustrations and these would make this book attractive for researchers and students to buy this book.

Plant proteases are involved in most aspects of plant physiology and development, playing key roles in the generation of signaling molecules and as regulators of essential cellular processes such as cell division and metabolism. They take part in important pathways like protein turnover by the degradation of misfolded proteins and the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, and they are responsible for post-translational modifications of proteins by proteolysis at highly specific sites. Proteases are also implicated in a great variety of environmentally controlled processes, including mobilization of storage proteins during seed germination, development of seedlings, senescence, programmed cell death and defense mechanisms against pests and pathogens. However, in spite of their importance, little is known about the functions and mode of actions of specific plant proteases. This Research Topic collects contributions covering diverse aspects of plant proteases research.

The volume III of the book presents the ways and means to manipulate the signals and signaling system to enhance the expression of plant innate immunity for crop disease management. It also describes bioengineering approaches to develop transgenic plants expressing enhanced disease resistance using plant immunity signaling genes. It also discusses recent commercial development of biotechnological products to manipulate plant innate immunity for crop disease management. Engineering durable nonspecific resistance to phytopathogens is one of the ultimate goals of plant breeding. However, most of the attempts to reach this goal fail as a result of rapid changes in pathogen populations and the sheer diversity of pathogen infection mechanisms. Recently several bioengineering and molecular manipulation technologies have been developed to activate the ‘sleeping’ plant innate immune system, which has potential to detect and suppress the development of a wide range of plant pathogens in economically important crop plants. Enhancing disease resistance through altered regulation of plant immunity signaling systems would be durable and publicly acceptable. Strategies for activation and improvement of plant immunity aim at enhancing host’s capability of recognizing invading pathogens, boosting the executive arsenal of plant immunity, and interfering with virulence strategies employed by microbial pathogens. Major advances in our understanding of the molecular basis of plant immunity and of microbial infection strategies have opened new ways for engineering durable resistance in crop plants.

"This volume covers protocols on techniques ranging from MAMP isolations from diverse microorganisms, PRR identifications from different plant species, MAMP-PRR binding, and a series of signaling responses and events revealed by various biochemical, cellular, genetic and bioinformatic tools. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Plant Pattern Recognition Receptors: Methods and Protocolsaims to ensure successful results in the further study of this vital field." -- OCLC.

A comprehensive review of stress signaling in plants using genomics and functional genomic approaches Improving agricultural production and meeting the needs of a rapidly growing global population requires crop systems capable of overcoming environmental stresses. Understanding the role of different signaling components in plant stress regulation is vital to developing crops which can withstand abiotic and biotic stresses without loss of crop yield and productivity. Emphasizing genomics and functional genomic approaches, Protein Kinases and Stress Signaling in Plants is a comprehensive review of cutting-edge research on stress perception, signal transduction, and stress response generation. Detailed chapters cover a broad range of topics central to improving agricultural production developing crop systems capable of overcoming environmental stresses to meet the needs of a rapidly growing global population. This book describes the field of protein kinases and stress signaling with a special emphasis on functional genomics. It presents a highly valuable contribution in the field of stress perception, signal transduction and generation of responses against one or multiple stress signals. This timely resource: Summarizes the role of various kinases involved in stress management Enumerates the role of TOR, GSK3-like kinase, SnRK kinases in different physiological conditions Examines mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in different stresses Describes the different aspects of calcium signaling under different stress conditions Examines photo-activated kinases (PAPKs) in varying light conditions Briefs the presence of tyrosine kinases in plants Highlights the cellular functions of receptor ]like protein kinases (RLKs) Possible implication of these kinases in developing stress tolerant crops Protein Kinases and Stress Signaling in Plants: Functional Genomic Perspective is an essential resource for researchers and students in the fields of plant molecular biology and signal transduction, plant responses to stress, plant cell signaling, plant protein kinases, plant biotechnology, transgenic plants and stress biology.

Plant neurobiology is a newly emerging field of plant sciences. It covers signalling and communication at all levels of biological organization – from molecules up to ecological communities. In this book, plants are presented as intelligent and social organisms with complex forms of communication and information processing. Authors from diverse backgrounds such as molecular and cellular biology, electrophysiology, as well as ecology treat the most important aspects of plant communication, including the plant immune system, abilities of plants to recognize self, signal transduction, receptors, plant neurotransmitters and plant neurophysiology. Further, plants are able to recognize the identity of herbivores and organize the defence responses accordingly. The similarities in animal and plant neuronal/immune systems are discussed too. All these hidden aspects of plant life and behaviour will stimulate further intense investigations in order to understand the communicative plants in their whole complexity.

Plants are endowed with innate immune system, which acts as a surveillance system against possible attack by pathogens. Plant innate immune systems have high potential to fight against viral, bacterial, oomycete and fungal pathogens and protect the crop plants against wide range of diseases. However, the innate immune system is a sleeping system in unstressed healthy plants. Fast and strong activation of the plant immune responses aids the host plants to win the war against the pathogens. Plant hormone signaling systems including salicylate (SA), jasmonate (JA), ethylene (ET), abscisic acid (ABA), auxins, cytokinins, gibberellins and brassinosteroids signaling systems play a key role in activation of the sleeping immune systems. Suppression or induction of specific hormone signaling systems may result in disease development or disease resistance. Specific signaling pathway has to be activated to confer resistance against specific pathogen in a particular host. Two forms of induced resistance, systemic acquired resistance (SAR) and induced systemic resistance (ISR), have been recognized based on the induction of specific hormone signaling systems. Specific hormone signaling system determines the outcome of plant-pathogen interactions, culminating in disease development or disease resistance. Susceptibility or resistance against a particular pathogen is determined by the action of the signaling network. The disease outcome is often determined by complex network of interactions among multiple hormone signaling pathways. Manipulation of the complex hormone signaling systems and fine tuning the hormone signaling events would help in management of various crop diseases. The purpose of the book is to critically examine the potential methods to manipulate the multiple plant hormone signaling systems to aid the host plants to win the battle against pathogens.

Plant innate immunity is a potential surveillance system of plants and is the first line of defense against invading pathogens. The immune system is a sleeping system in unstressed healthy plants and is activated on perception of the pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMP; the pathogen’s signature) of invading pathogens. The PAMP alarm/danger signals are perceived by plant pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs). The plant immune system uses several second messengers to encode information generated by the PAMPs and deliver the information downstream of PRRs to proteins which decode/interpret signals and initiate defense gene expression. This book describes the most fascinating PAMP-PRR signaling complex and signal transduction systems. It also discusses the highly complex networks of signaling pathways involved in transmission of the signals to induce distinctly different defense-related genes to mount offence against pathogens.

Epigenetics is a new field that explains gene expression at the chromatin structure and organization level. Three principal epigenetic mechanisms are known and hundreds of combinations among them can develop different phenotypic characteristics. DNA methylation, histone modifications and small RNAs have been identified, and their functions are being studied in order to understand the mechanisms of interaction and regulation among the different biological processes in plants. Although, fundamental epigenetic mechanisms in crop plants are beginning to be elucidated, the comprehension of the different epigenetic mechanisms, by which plant gene regulation and phenotype are modified, is a major topic to develop in the near future in order to increase crop productivity. Thus, the importance of epigenetics in improving crop productivity is undoubtedly growing. Current research on epigenetics suggest that DNA methylation, histone modifications and small RNAs are involved in almost every aspect of plant life including agronomically important traits such as flowering time, fruit development, responses to environmental factors, defense response and plant growth. The aim of this Research Topic is to explore the recent advances concerning the role of epigenetics in crop biotechnology, as well as to enhance and promote interactions among high quality researchers from different disciplines such as genetics, cell biology, pathology, microbiology, and evolutionary biology in order to join forces and decipher the epigenetic mechanisms in crop productivity.