Innate Immunity and Stress Responses in Plants: Mechanisms and Resilience

Dear Colleagues, 

Climate change and escalating anthropogenic pressures are intensifying biotic and abiotic stresses on plants. Understanding the dual role of plant innate immunity, as both a defense mechanism against pathogens and a regulator of stress adaptation, has emerged as a critical frontier in sustainable agriculture. Innate immunity not only protects plants from microbial invasions but also intersects with pathways that mitigate abiotic stressors such as drought, salinity, and extreme temperatures. This integrative capacity positions innate immunity as a cornerstone for engineering resilient crops in a rapidly changing environment.

This Topic, “Innate Immunity and Stress Responses in Plants: Mechanisms and Resilience”, aims to synthesize cutting-edge research on the molecular, physiological, and ecological mechanisms by which plants coordinate immune and stress-responsive networks to survive under adverse conditions. We seek to unravel how these systems synergize to optimize resource allocation, balance growth-defense trade-offs, and enhance resilience.

We invite original research articles, reviews, and perspectives addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

1. Molecular mechanisms of innate immunity: Receptor-like kinases (RLKs), nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat (NLR) proteins, pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP)-triggered immunity (PTI), and effector-triggered immunity (ETI).
2. Cross-kingdom signaling: Interactions between immune pathways (e.g., salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, ethylene) and abiotic stress signals (e.g., ROS, Ca²⁺, ABA).
3. Systemic acquired resistance (SAR) and priming: Long-distance signaling, metabolic reprogramming, and stress memory.
4. Ecological and evolutionary dynamics: Role of microbial communities, endophytes, and plant–microbe interactions in shaping immune-stress resilience.
5. Biotechnological innovations: CRISPR-based editing, synthetic biology, and omics-driven approaches to engineer dual stress-tolerant crops.
6. Field applications: Development of bioinoculants, biostimulants, and agroecological practices leveraging innate immunity for sustainable farming.

This Topic will provide a platform to advance our understanding of plant resilience mechanisms. Manuscripts will undergo rigorous peer review to ensure scientific rigor and relevance.

We eagerly anticipate your contributions to this vital scientific discourse.

Prof. Dr. Shitou Xia
Prof. Dr. Yuanqing Jiang
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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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.

• innate immunity
• stress responses
• pant–microbe interactions
• cross-kingdom signaling
• biotechnological innovations
• field applications