Upon infection with certain microbes, plants become more resistant to subsequent infections with a broad spectrum of disease-causing agents. Characterization of this phenomenon, called systemic acquired resistance or SAR, has great societal impact through the development of environmentally friendly and sustainable methods for protecting crop plants from disease. In the previous NSF-sponsored project, SAR was found to be associated with defense priming through the increased production and long distance transport of a plant metabolite called azelaic acid. When plants are primed due to exposure to azelaic acid, they activate their defenses more quickly and to higher levels when a new infection ensues. The current renewal project aims to use genetics, biochemistry and molecular biology to (1) examine the characteristics of the primed state of plant cells and (2) discover which plant components are important for the production and action of azelaic acid. This research will result in the creation of essential new knowledge that can be exploited for crop protection strategies. Specifically, the research will discern the degree to which the primed state is associated with changes in proteins called histones that bind genetic material and enable specific genes to be readily deployed for defense activation. The research will also define where and how SAR-associated components act in the priming pathway activated by azelaic acid. The project will provide excellent educational opportunities for a postdoctoral fellow as well as under-represented undergraduate and high school students who will be recruited to the project.
