ibclogo XVI International Botanical Congess


Abstract Number: 2430
Session = 7.10.4


SURFACE SIGNALING IN PATHOGENISIS


H. C. Hoch, Department of Plant Pathology, Cornell University, NYSAES, Geneva, NY, 14456, USA.


Critical to pathogenesis and the invasion process by phytopathogenic fungi is recognition of host surface features. Recognition by some fungi is through perception of physical contact with the surface. Earliest recognition events begin when a fungal spore makes contact with the host surface. Conidia of species of Phyllosticta represent the best documented examples where such contact with the substratum is required for initiation of germination. Subsequent recognition events include signaling for growth orientation by germ tubes, a process involving perception of topography. Culmination of the growth process is noted in germ tubes that recognize specific topographies which signal for initiation of appressoria, a morphologically distinct structure that facilitates in the fungal cell gaining entry into it's host.


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