The volume III of the book presents the ways and means to manipulate the
signals and signaling system to enhance the expression of plant innate
immunity for crop disease management. It also describes bioengineering
approaches to develop transgenic plants expressing enhanced disease
resistance using plant immunity signaling genes. It also discusses
recent commercial development of biotechnological products to manipulate
plant innate immunity for crop disease management.
Engineering durable nonspecific resistance to phytopathogens is one of
the ultimate goals of plant breeding. However, most of the attempts to
reach this goal fail as a result of rapid changes in pathogen
populations and the sheer diversity of pathogen infection mechanisms.
Recently several bioengineering and molecular manipulation technologies
have been developed to activate the 'sleeping' plant innate immune
system, which has potential to detect and suppress the development of a
wide range of plant pathogens in economically important crop plants.
Enhancing disease resistance through altered regulation of plant
immunity signaling systems would be durable and publicly acceptable.
Strategies for activation and improvement of plant immunity aim at
enhancing host's capability of recognizing invading pathogens, boosting
the executive arsenal of plant immunity, and interfering with virulence
strategies employed by microbial pathogens. Major advances in our
understanding of the molecular basis of plant immunity and of microbial
infection strategies have opened new ways for engineering durable
resistance in crop plants.
