About this Research Topic
Horticultural crops are an integral part of economic growth and they contribute significantly to agricultural production. Plants can be infected by pathogenic oomycetes, fungi and bacteria that cause significant yield losses worldwide and have a great impact on food security.
Effectors are biological molecules evolved by pathogens, including proteins, small RNAs, and a variety of secondary toxic metabolites (e.g., Volatile Organic Compounds) to facilitate host infection. Although large efforts have been made to understand the mechanisms related to effectors and their biological nature in model plants, they are still not fully understood. Holistic approaches may lead us to unravel the large number of crosstalk signals and interactions involved in the infection and colonization process that occurs between pathogens, horticultural plants, and their associated microbiome. Indeed, microbe-microbe interactions, other than the establishment of interactions with pathogens and VOCs in the ecological host niches may play a major role in enhancing or hindering pathogen invasion.
Advances in omics technologies are fostering a greater understanding of the mechanistic and genetic strategies used by pathogens to infect plants, and of their possible molecular coevolution to overcome plant immunity, such as avoiding host recognition and/or manipulating plant physiological pathways for counteracting plant defences. The expression and/or manifestation of various virulence mechanisms can also be influenced by a plant's microbiome, emphasizing the need of studying pathogen interactions with plants, host native microbiota, and the environment. Moreover, the integration of proteomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics is key for a deeper understanding of the relationship between hosts and pathogens, including how the invasion and colonisation of the host by the pathogen occurs. Aiming to find innovative strategies for the sustainable management of plant pathogens, this Research Topic will unravel how fungal and bacterial pathogens modulate or interact with the bacterial community associated with plants, the volatile metabolites produced during their invasion of the host, and their coevolutionary competition within horticultural crops.
The goal of this Research Topic is to gain a more comprehensive understanding of microbial pathogen/host interactions through omics approaches. We look to provide and to highlight valuable information, leading to the design of innovative approaches in plant pathology for diseases management, including in plant resistance and breeding. The studies collected in this Research Topic will cover the latest research, through original articles, reviews and mini-reviews focused on themes that include, but are not limited to:
• Omics studies on the interactions between pathogens and horticultural plant microbiomes;
• Proteinauceus and non-proteinaceus phytopathogen effector secretion;
• Sensor-based technologies for metabolomic analyses of plant-pathogen interactions;
• Horizontal Gene Transfer (HGT) and evolution of pathogenicity in plant-pathogen interactions;
• Changes in native microbiota by pathogen aggressiveness;
• Changes in beneficial microbes and their importance in plants upon pathogen inoculation.
Effectors are biological molecules evolved by pathogens, including proteins, small RNAs, and a variety of secondary toxic metabolites (e.g., Volatile Organic Compounds) to facilitate host infection. Although large efforts have been made to understand the mechanisms related to effectors and their biological nature in model plants, they are still not fully understood. Holistic approaches may lead us to unravel the large number of crosstalk signals and interactions involved in the infection and colonization process that occurs between pathogens, horticultural plants, and their associated microbiome. Indeed, microbe-microbe interactions, other than the establishment of interactions with pathogens and VOCs in the ecological host niches may play a major role in enhancing or hindering pathogen invasion.
Advances in omics technologies are fostering a greater understanding of the mechanistic and genetic strategies used by pathogens to infect plants, and of their possible molecular coevolution to overcome plant immunity, such as avoiding host recognition and/or manipulating plant physiological pathways for counteracting plant defences. The expression and/or manifestation of various virulence mechanisms can also be influenced by a plant's microbiome, emphasizing the need of studying pathogen interactions with plants, host native microbiota, and the environment. Moreover, the integration of proteomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics is key for a deeper understanding of the relationship between hosts and pathogens, including how the invasion and colonisation of the host by the pathogen occurs. Aiming to find innovative strategies for the sustainable management of plant pathogens, this Research Topic will unravel how fungal and bacterial pathogens modulate or interact with the bacterial community associated with plants, the volatile metabolites produced during their invasion of the host, and their coevolutionary competition within horticultural crops.
The goal of this Research Topic is to gain a more comprehensive understanding of microbial pathogen/host interactions through omics approaches. We look to provide and to highlight valuable information, leading to the design of innovative approaches in plant pathology for diseases management, including in plant resistance and breeding. The studies collected in this Research Topic will cover the latest research, through original articles, reviews and mini-reviews focused on themes that include, but are not limited to:
• Omics studies on the interactions between pathogens and horticultural plant microbiomes;
• Proteinauceus and non-proteinaceus phytopathogen effector secretion;
• Sensor-based technologies for metabolomic analyses of plant-pathogen interactions;
• Horizontal Gene Transfer (HGT) and evolution of pathogenicity in plant-pathogen interactions;
• Changes in native microbiota by pathogen aggressiveness;
• Changes in beneficial microbes and their importance in plants upon pathogen inoculation.
Keywords: horticulture, crops, microbes, plant pathogens, biotic stress, effectors. VOCs, horizontal gene transfer
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