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Plants
Special Issues
Plant Immunity and Disease Resistance Mechanisms
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Plant Immunity and Disease Resistance Mechanisms

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Protection and Biotic Interactions".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 8253

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Yi-Hsien Lin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Plant Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung, Taiwan
Interests: biological control; plant pests; fermentation; plant pathogenic bacteria; plant immunity; plant pathology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

The control of plant diseases has always been a critical issue in agriculture. Understanding how plants utilize their intrinsic defense systems to reduce pathogen infections is a fascinating process. Over the past two decades, the concept of plant immunity has been more comprehensively established. The process of plant immune response primarily involves the recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns or effectors by receptors inside and outside of plant cells, which subsequently activates the plant's defense pathways. The strength of the plant’s immune response often determines whether the plant can exhibit disease resistance. Furthermore, these defense pathways can also be triggered by molecules released from damaged plant tissues or by microorganisms in the plant’s growth environment. Exploring the diverse mechanisms that initiate plant defense pathways is of great significance, and bridging the gap between mechanistic research and practical applications remains a crucial aspect of agricultural science. 

This Special Issue aims to include manuscripts focusing on the processes from the activation of plant defense pathways to the manifestation of plant disease resistance, as well as studies related to the regulation of plant defense responses using microorganisms. Both fundamental research and applied research fall within the scope of this Special Issue. 

Prof. Dr. Yi-Hsien Lin
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. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). 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

  • agricultural management
  • disease control
  • induced resistance
  • plant defense
  • plant immunity
  • plant–pathogen interactions

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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25 pages, 3034 KB  
Article
Differential Roles of Circular RNAs and Their Homologous Linear RNAs in Hevea brasiliensis Immunity Against Erysiphe quercicola
by Changshu Li, Lin Wang, Lijuan He, Xiao Li, Wenbo Liu, Chunhua Lin and Weiguo Miao
Plants 2026, 15(7), 1068; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants15071068 - 31 Mar 2026
Viewed by 460
Abstract
Hevea brasiliensis (H. brasiliensis) is the principal source of natural rubber, but its productivity is severely threatened by powdery mildew caused by the biotrophic fungus Erysiphe quercicola (E. quercicola). Although circular RNAs (circRNAs) are emerging as key regulators in [...] Read more.
Hevea brasiliensis (H. brasiliensis) is the principal source of natural rubber, but its productivity is severely threatened by powdery mildew caused by the biotrophic fungus Erysiphe quercicola (E. quercicola). Although circular RNAs (circRNAs) are emerging as key regulators in plant stress responses, their functions in H. brasiliensis immunity remain largely unexplored. Here, we aimed to systematically characterize circRNAs involved in the early immune response of H. brasiliensis to E. quercicola. Transcriptome sequencing and bioinformatic analyses identified 52 and 177 differentially expressed circRNAs (HbcircRNAs) at 1 and 3 days post-inoculation, respectively. Twelve HbcircRNAs with significant expression changes were validated, and nine were confirmed as true circRNAs. Functional assays using spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS) in H. brasiliensis leaves and heterologous overexpression in the Arabidopsis thaliana eds1 mutant, which is susceptible to E. quercicola, revealed that HbcircARF3, HbcircSCSA1, and HbcircARFGAP8, together with their homologous linear counterparts (HbLinearRNAs), exert distinct regulatory effects on disease resistance. Silencing of these HbcircRNAs enhanced host immunity, whereas overexpression increased susceptibility. Pathway analyses suggested their involvement in auxin signaling, mitochondrial energy metabolism and vesicle trafficking. Collectively, our findings uncover the differential regulatory roles of circular and linear RNAs in the H. brasiliensis–E. quercicola interaction, providing mechanistic insights and potential molecular targets for breeding disease-resistant H. brasiliensis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Immunity and Disease Resistance Mechanisms)
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27 pages, 3649 KB  
Article
Wheat miR408 and miR159 Weaken the Virulence of Parastagonospora nodorum (Berk.) and Induce the Defense Response in Plants (Triticum aestivum L.) Against Pathogens
by Svetlana Veselova, Tatyana Nuzhnaya, Guzel Burkhanova, Sergey Rumyantsev and Igor Maksimov
Plants 2026, 15(5), 789; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants15050789 - 4 Mar 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 427
Abstract
The discovery of bidirectional microRNA transfer between two organisms during plant–microbe interactions and the ability of some fungal pathogens to absorb double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) or short interfering RNA (siRNA) from the environment provided an impetus for exploiting this mechanism in plant defense against [...] Read more.
The discovery of bidirectional microRNA transfer between two organisms during plant–microbe interactions and the ability of some fungal pathogens to absorb double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) or short interfering RNA (siRNA) from the environment provided an impetus for exploiting this mechanism in plant defense against pathogens. In this study, we investigated the role of conserved wheat microRNAs (miRNAs), miRNA408 and miRNA159, in inducing plant defense responses and suppressing the virulence of the phytopathogenic ascomycete fungus Parastagonospora nodorum, mediated by necrotrophic effectors (NEs) encoded by SnTox genes regulated by fungal transcription factors (TFs). The foliar spraying with in vitro synthesized siRNA408 and siRNA159 duplexes before inoculation with SnTox3-producing P. nodorum isolate increased wheat plant resistance to the SnB isolate and suppressed the pathogen growth and development. Most likely, silencing of the miRNA408 target genes TaCAT-2A, TaCAT-2B, and TaCLP1, and the miRNA159 target gene TaMYB65, led to the induction of a defense response of wheat plants against P. nodorum. This defense response was characterized by a decrease in the catalase activity, accumulation of hydrogen peroxide, activation of the expression of salicylic acid signaling pathway genes (TaWRKY13, TaPR1), and suppression of the expression of ethylene signaling pathway genes (TaEIN3, TaPR3). We demonstrated for the first time the ability of siRNA159 and siRNA408 to penetrate the mycelium of the pathogen P. nodorum and be involved in the cross-kingdom regulation of fungal genes to suppress the expression of some genes of NE (SnToxA, SnTox3) and fungal TFs (SnStuA). We predicted potential targets for wheat miRNA408 and miRNA159 in the P. nodorum transcriptome, making spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS) promising for use against this pathogen. These results provide valuable insights for studying the cross-kingdom transfer of plant miRNAs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Immunity and Disease Resistance Mechanisms)
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16 pages, 3335 KB  
Article
Molecular Cloning, Bioinformatics, and Expression Analysis of the NPR1 Homolog in Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.)
by Mingfeng Yan, Xiaolin Zhao, Xingshen Li, Zhenrui He, Juling Hua, Lingen Wei, Yang Sun, Chuanxu Wan and Shuijin Huang
Plants 2025, 14(23), 3557; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14233557 - 21 Nov 2025
Viewed by 730
Abstract
Sesame bacterial wilt, caused by the pathogen Ralstonia solanacearum, is a major constraint for continuous cropping. Deciphering the defense mechanisms of sesame is therefore essential to the development of novel and effective control strategies. The Non-expressor of Pathogenesis-Related 1 (NPR1) plays a [...] Read more.
Sesame bacterial wilt, caused by the pathogen Ralstonia solanacearum, is a major constraint for continuous cropping. Deciphering the defense mechanisms of sesame is therefore essential to the development of novel and effective control strategies. The Non-expressor of Pathogenesis-Related 1 (NPR1) plays a key role in regulating salicylic acid (SA)-mediated systemic acquired resistance (SAR). In this study, we reported that leaf treatments with 50 μg/mL benzothiadiazole (BTH) resulted in increased protection of sesame against Ralstonia solanacearum. We clarified the structure, expression patterns, and function of a NPR1 homologous gene, SiNPR1, in sesame. The SiNPR1 gene open reading frame comprises 1758 bp, and it encodes 585 amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that SiNPR1 is closely related to NPR1-like in Olea europaea and clustered with other members of the families Monocotyledon and Dicotyledon. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) results demonstrated that the expression of the SiNPR1 gene was organ-specific and could be induced by BTH. The yeast two-hybrid assay confirmed that SiNPR1 directly interacts with SiTGA2. In conclusion, these results suggest that SiNPR1 plays a pivotal role in the BTH-dependent systemic acquired resistance in sesame. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Immunity and Disease Resistance Mechanisms)
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15 pages, 4614 KB  
Article
Phosphorylation of Plant Ferredoxin-like Protein Is Required for Intensifying PAMP-Triggered Immunity in Arabidopsis thaliana
by Tzu-Yi Chen, Rui-Wen Gong, Bo-Wei Chen and Yi-Hsien Lin
Plants 2025, 14(13), 2044; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14132044 - 3 Jul 2025
Viewed by 4485
Abstract
The immune response triggered when plant cell surface receptors recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) is known as PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI). Several studies have demonstrated that extracellular plant ferredoxin-like protein (PFLP) can enhance PTI signaling, thereby conferring resistance to bacterial diseases in various plants. [...] Read more.
The immune response triggered when plant cell surface receptors recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) is known as PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI). Several studies have demonstrated that extracellular plant ferredoxin-like protein (PFLP) can enhance PTI signaling, thereby conferring resistance to bacterial diseases in various plants. The C-terminal casein kinase II (CK2) phosphorylation region of PFLP is essential for strengthening PTI. However, whether phosphorylation at this site directly enhances PTI signaling and consequently increases plant disease resistance remains unclear. To investigate this, site-directed mutagenesis was used to generate PFLPT90A, a non-phosphorylatable mutant, and PFLPT90D, a phospho-mimetic mutant, for functional analysis. Based on the experimental results, none of the recombinant proteins were able to enhance the hypersensitive response induced by the HrpN protein or increase resistance to the soft rot pathogen Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum ECC17. These findings suggest that phosphorylation at the T90 residue might be essential for PFLP-mediated enhancement of plant immune responses, implying that this post-translational modification is likely required for its disease resistance function in planta. To further explore the relationship between PFLP phosphorylation and endogenous CK2, the Arabidopsis insertion mutant cka2 and the complemented line CKA2R were analyzed under treatment with flg22Pst from Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato. The effects of PFLP on the hypersensitive response, rapid oxidative burst, callose deposition, and susceptibility to soft rot confirmed that CK2 is required for these immune responses. Furthermore, expression analysis of PTI-related genes FRK1 and WRKY22/29 in the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway demonstrated that CK2 is necessary for PFLP to enhance flg22Pst-induced immune signaling. Taken together, these findings suggest that PFLP enhances A. thaliana resistance to bacterial soft rot primarily by promoting the MAPK signaling pathway triggered by PAMP recognition, with CK2-mediated phosphorylation being essential for its function. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Immunity and Disease Resistance Mechanisms)
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Review

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20 pages, 2559 KB  
Review
Integrative Roles of miRNAs and circRNAs in Plant Antiviral Gene Regulation and Autophagy
by Nurgul Iksat, Zhaksat Baikarayev, Oleksiy Shevchenko, Kuralay Zhanassova, Assemgul Bekturova, Sayan Zhangazin and Zhaksylyk Masalimov
Plants 2025, 14(22), 3541; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14223541 - 20 Nov 2025
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1362
Abstract
Agriculture is still at serious risk from viral infections, particularly in light of climate change and more intensive farming practices. Small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs), in particular microRNAs (miRNAs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs), have emerged as crucial post-transcriptional regulators of plant antiviral defense in [...] Read more.
Agriculture is still at serious risk from viral infections, particularly in light of climate change and more intensive farming practices. Small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs), in particular microRNAs (miRNAs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs), have emerged as crucial post-transcriptional regulators of plant antiviral defense in this setting. These molecules provide an essential RNA-based immunity layer by regulating hormones, autophagy, redox balance, immunological signaling, and programmed cell death. In this work, we examine the molecular processes through which circRNAs and miRNAs function during viral infection, focusing on how they affect autophagy and systemic acquired resistance (SAR). Through thorough searches of PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus, we combined findings from peer-reviewed experimental and transcriptomic studies. Our study covers important crops as well as model species (Arabidopsis thaliana, Nicotiana benthamiana), providing a thorough understanding of sRNA synthesis, target control, and antiviral signaling. By combining previously disparate data, this review provides a coherent framework for understanding how short RNAs affect plant immune responses to viral infections. We highlight key regulatory relationships that need further study and propose that these results can be used as a foundation for new RNA-based biotechnological approaches. By carefully altering RNA regulatory mechanisms, scientists can use this information to help them create more resistant crops. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Immunity and Disease Resistance Mechanisms)
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