Interconnection between actin cytoskeleton and plant defense signaling.

Actin cytoskeleton is the fundamental structural component of eukaryotic cells. It has a role in numerous elementary cellular processes such as reproduction, development and also in response to abiotic and biotic stimuli. Remarkably, the role of actin cytoskeleton in plant response to pathogens is getting to be under magnifying glass.

Changes in actin dynamics are involved in salicylic acid signaling pathway.

Changes in actin cytoskeleton dynamics are one of the crucial players in many physiological as well as non-physiological processes in plant cells. Positioning of actin filament arrays is necessary for successful establishment of primary lines of defense toward pathogen attack, depolymerization leads very often to the enhanced susceptibility to the invading pathogen. On the other hand it was also shown that the disruption of actin cytoskeleton leads to the induction of defense response leading to the expression of PATHOGENESIS RELATED proteins (PR).