Relationship Between Plant Microbiome 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 March 2026 | Viewed by 1754
Special Issue Editor
Interests: plant immunity; root microbiome; plant resistance to parasites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
You are all aware that microbial communities that are associated with rhizosphere of plant roots are nowadays widely recognized to have paramount importance for plant performance against abiotic and biotic stresses and for a healthy growth. The term microbiome refers to a microbial community which occupies a well-defined habitat that can be distinguished by specific physico-chemical properties. Plants undergoing abiotic, pest- and pathogen-induced stresses actively seek and select from the environments beneficial microorganisms, mainly plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), to enhance and strengthen their immunity response. Microbiomes also assist plants in improving the mobilization of nutrients in soil for root uptake and in enhancing their tolerance to environmental stresses. There is an increasing need of investigations about how the plant immune system or the secretion of selective metabolites affects the microbiome and how microbiome affects the plant immune system. Another topic we want to focus on in this Special Issue is the impact of treatments with plant immune hormones, such as jasmonic, salicylic, abscisic acids and ethylene, on the composition of microbiomes and, consequently, on the immune response to pathogen and pest attacks. Moreover, it is generally known that plants recognize microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs) by cell surface-localized pattern recognition receptors (PRRs). We invite to submit studies on possible interference of microbiome in this recognition and on signaling events leading to the so-called MAMP-triggered immunity (MTI), characterized by ion (Ca2+, H+) fluxes and transient oxidative bursts produced by a higher generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Although a consistent amount of research has been done so far, the molecular, genetic, and epigenetic mechanisms by which immunity is triggered by a suitable microbiome are far to be completely revealed.
Therefore, the scope of this issue is to collect original research articles and up-to-date reviews on the above-mentioned relationship between microbiome and plant immune response to biotic as well as tolerance to abiotic stresses.
I look forward to receiving your contributions.
Dr. Sergio Molinari
Guest Editor
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
- microbiome
- plant immune system
- rhizosphere of plant roots
- microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs)
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.
