XopN is a type III effector protein from Xanthomonas campestris pathovar vesicatoria that suppresses PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI) in tomato. Previous work reported that XopN interacts with the tomato 14-3-3 isoform TFT1; however, TFT1's role in PTI and/or XopN virulence was not determined. Here we show that TFT1 functions in PTI and is a XopN virulence target. Virus-induced gene silencing of T...

Fungal wilt diseases are among the most destructive pathogens attacking crop plants globally. Host resistance is considered a key for Fusarium wilt management. Some resistant plant varieties have been screened, but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Here detailed metabolomic analysis was performed of resistant and susceptible tomato varieties in response to Fusarium wilt infection...

The multi-subunit complex Elongator interacts with elongating RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) and is thought to facilitate transcription through histone acetylation. Elongator is highly conserved in eukaryotes, yet has multiple kingdom-specific functions in diverse organisms. Recent genetic studies performed in Arabidopsis have demonstrated that Elongator functions in plant growth and development, a...

Specific syntaxins, such as Arabidopsis AtPEN1 and its barley ortholog ROR2, play a major role in plant defense against powdery mildews. Indeed, the impairment of these genes results in increased fungal penetration in both host and non-host interactions. In this study, a genome-wide survey allowed the identification of 21 tomato syntaxins. Two of them, named SlPEN1a and SlPEN1b, are closely rel...

Strong viroid-caused pathogenesis was achieved in tomato cv. Rutgers by biolistic transfer of severe or lethal potato spindle tuber viroid (PSTVd) strains, while other tomato genotypes (e.g., Moneymaker) were tolerant. With reciprocal hybrids between sensitive and tolerant genotypes, we show that plant depression dominates over tolerance. Biolistic transfer of the most pathogenic PSTVd strain A...

Bemisia tabaci (whitefly) infestations and the subsequent transfer of viruses are the cause of severe losses in crop production and horticultural practice. To improve biological control of B. tabaci, we investigated repellent properties of plant-produced semiochemicals. The mix of headspace volatiles, collected from naturally repellent wild tomato accessions, influenced B. tabaci initial choice...

extra use of chemical fertilizers in recent decades had resulted in pollution of water, soil and other environmental recourses. to investigate the effects of humic acid as an organic fertilizer on some yield components of three tomato (lycopersicon esculentum l.) varieties, an experiment was conducted during 2010 growing season at khorasan-e-razavi, ahmadabad suburb of mashhad. experiment was a...

Fusarium solani is the causative organism of Fusarium wilt of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill). Four Bacillus spp identified as B. amyloliquefaciens, B. cereus, B. pumilus and B. subtilis were tested for biocontrol activities in vitro as zone of inhibition and in vivo as percent disease control and disease incidence. The result from in vitro analysis showed that B. amyloliquefaciens inhibi...

As part of large protein complexes, Snf2 family ATPases are responsible for energy supply during chromatin remodeling, but the precise mechanism of action of many of these proteins is largely unknown. They influence many processes in plants, such as the response to environmental stress. This analysis is the first comprehensive study of Snf2 family ATPases in plants. We here present a comparativ...