Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
9.0
4.9
Journals
IJMS
Special Issues
Deciphering the Molecular Mechanisms That Regulate Plant Disease and Immunity
ijms-logo
Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for IJMS Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

Deciphering the Molecular Mechanisms That Regulate Plant Disease and Immunity

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Plant Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 June 2026 | Viewed by 1114

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Bourlaye Fofana

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Charlottetown Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 440 University Avenue, Charlottetown, PE C1A 4N6, Canada
Interests: plant molecular physiology; genomics; flax; potato; germplasm; seed and tuber quality
Dr. Champa Wijekoon

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Morden Research and Development Centre, Morden, MB R6M 1Y5, Canada
2. Canadian Centre for Agri-Food Research in Health and Medicine, Winnipeg, MB R3C 1B2, Canada
Interests: Phytophthora infestans; potatoes; camelina sativa; mutagenesis; reverse genetics; bioactives; metabolomics; plant microbial genetics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plants, as sessile organisms, are inherently unable to escape the biotic and abiotic stressors present in their environments. To cope with biotic challenges, they have evolved a complex network of molecular mechanisms that enable the detection of pathogenic threats, the activation of defense responses, and the regulation of immune pathways—processes that ultimately determine survival or susceptibility.

Recent advances in omics technologies—including genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, lipidomics, and metabolomics—have significantly enhanced our understanding of the molecular frameworks underlying plant immunity and disease resistance. These insights are instrumental in guiding the development of resilient crop varieties capable of thriving under diverse environmental conditions.

This Special Issue, “Deciphering the Molecular Mechanisms That Regulate Plant Disease and Immunity”, published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, invites original research articles and comprehensive reviews that employ omics-based approaches to explore the signaling pathways and regulatory networks involved in plant immune responses.

Dr. Bourlaye Fofana
Dr. Champa Wijekoon
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • plants
  • biotic stressors
  • molecular mechanisms
  • omics technologies
  • plant immunity

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

19 pages, 4641 KB  
Article
Gymnosporangium yamadae Effector GyHRb12 Targets the Host Ribosomal Protein MdRPS20 to Enhance Translation and Suppress Immunity of Apple Leaves
by Chuxing Li, Chenxi Shao and Yingmei Liang
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(7), 2970; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27072970 - 25 Mar 2026
Viewed by 289
Abstract
The apple rust fungus Gymnosporangium yamadae (G. yamadae) secretes effector proteins into host apple leaf cells to facilitate parasitism. Among these, the candidate effector GyHRb12 was found to localize to the nucleus upon transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana leaf cells, although [...] Read more.
The apple rust fungus Gymnosporangium yamadae (G. yamadae) secretes effector proteins into host apple leaf cells to facilitate parasitism. Among these, the candidate effector GyHRb12 was found to localize to the nucleus upon transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana leaf cells, although its functional role remained unclear. Subsequent investigations demonstrated that overexpression of GyHRb12 protein decreases plant cell resistance and attenuates the transcription of multiple antifungal-related genes. Using a yeast two-hybrid screen, MdRPS20, a component of the 30S ribosomal subunit, was identified as an interactor of GyHRb12. Proteomic analysis revealed that GyHRb12 modulates the expression of proteins involved in protein translation processes, which may be mediated by changes in ribosomal abundance. Notably, mutating the 14th amino acid in MdRPS20 disrupted its interaction with GyHRb12, underscoring the critical role of this residue in effector recognition and subsequent suppression of host immunity. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that G. yamadae employs a nuclear-localized effector to target a ribosomal subunit protein, thereby reprogramming host translation activity and suppressing host immunity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Deciphering the Molecular Mechanisms That Regulate Plant Disease and Immunity)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

21 pages, 10036 KB  
Article
Cell Wall Dynamics in Haustorial Development of Cuscuta campestris During Parasitism on Differentially Susceptible Hosts
by Carlos Frey, Lucía López-López, Andrea Martínez-Toral, Diego Castro and José Luis Acebes
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(4), 1914; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27041914 - 17 Feb 2026
Viewed by 561
Abstract
Dodder (Cuscuta campestris) is a parasitic plant that causes severe economic losses to crops such as mung bean (Vigna radiata), although some species, including tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), exhibit varying degrees of resistance. Dodder parasitism begins with the [...] Read more.
Dodder (Cuscuta campestris) is a parasitic plant that causes severe economic losses to crops such as mung bean (Vigna radiata), although some species, including tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), exhibit varying degrees of resistance. Dodder parasitism begins with the development of the haustorium, whose endophytic primordium undergoes intrusive growth to penetrate host tissues. While the cell walls of endophytic cells are essential for invasion, the sequential changes occurring in these cell walls are not fully understood. This study aims to characterize cell wall modifications in Cuscuta campestris haustoria during parasitism of a susceptible host (Vigna radiata) and a resistant host (Solanum lycopersicum ‘Minibel’), using histochemical and immunohistochemical approaches focused on homogalacturonan (HG) and arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs). In both hosts, AGPs and HG (predominantly in their demethylesterified form) increased in the host-facing epidermal walls, the aligned file cells of the haustoria, and the boundary layer surrounding the haustorial cone. The boundary layer was enriched in AGPs and initially showed massive HG deposition, later incorporating lignin and callose. In tomato, lignin-based resistance was associated with the outermost cortical cells and did not substantially affect the overall dynamics of the dodder cell walls. These findings highlight the central role of coordinated cell wall remodeling in dodder invasion and reveal broadly similar developmental trajectories of HG and AGPs in haustoria formed on susceptible and resistant hosts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Deciphering the Molecular Mechanisms That Regulate Plant Disease and Immunity)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop