Use of elicitors as an approach for sustainable agriculture

Abstract

Plant pathogens are responsible for large declines in agricultural production. Their control is carried out mainly by chemical and frequently proposed biological methods to reduce their environmental impact. On the other hand, plant-pathogen or microbe interactions generate multiple signals within plants activating defense mechanism, some of which can also be induced by elicitors (protective molecules). Elicitor-induced plant signaling serves as a guide to a series of intracellular events that end in activation of transduction cascades and hormonal pathways triggering induced resistance (IR) and consequently activation of plant immunity to environmental stresses. So, it is necessary to understand where and how elicitors act in cellular defense mechanism of crops, to improve protection and management for sustainable crop. Therefore this review focused on main topics that guide induced resistance and therefore activation of plant immune response.

Keywords: Elicitors, defense mechanism, Immune response, Induced resistance, MAPK