Abstract
Elucidation of the plant defense signaling network controlling responses to pathogen infection, has been challenging for several biological reasons. First, plant defense signaling pathways are highly interconnected. Second, plants receive multiple stimuli associated with pathogen infection including pathogen-associated molecular patterns and effectors delivered directly into plant cells. Third, part of the signaling network is robust to perturbations.
To reveal the structure and function of this signaling network, we have employed a strategy using parallel and quantitative data collection. Our objective is to collect hundreds of observations about the behavior of the system after introducing specific perturbations. To this end, we have developed a high-performance, inexpensive custom microarray and have initiated gene expression profiling combined with a reverse genetics strategy. Analysis of known mutants as reference points within the signaling network revealed a model for the topology of the network and key players controlling signaling pathways utilized to process different stimuli.
