Molecular mechanisms of hypersensitive cell death in plants
Plants have honed their own defense strategies, because they have no immune system. A typical plant defense strategy, hypersensitive cell death (HCD) to pathogens, involves programmed cell death at the infection site, which prevents the growth and spread of pathogens into healthy tissues. Recently, we have succeeded in identifying a key component underlying the HCD as vacuolar processing enzyme (VPE). In this study, I will clarify a molecular mechanism of the VPE-regulated HCD. The insights obtained by this research will provide a practical application to strengthen disease resistance in crops.
