2025/01/24 by Philipp Köster, Gefeng He, Changyun Liu +11 · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Plant Stress Responses and Tolerance #Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity #Plant Molecular Biology Research
paper · doi:10.1126/sciadv.adt9804
openalex publication_date 2025/01/24 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
Systemic signaling is an essential hallmark of multicellular life. Pathogen encounter occurs locally but triggers organ-scale and organismic immune responses. In plants, elicitor perception provokes systemically expanding Ca 2+ and H 2 O 2 signals conferring immunity. Here, we identify a Ca 2+ sensing bi-kinase module as becoming super-activated through mutual phosphorylation and as imposing synergistically enhanced NADPH oxidase activation. A combined two-layer bi-kinase/substrate phospho-code allows for sensitized signaling initiation already by near-resting elevations of Ca 2+ concentration. Subsequently, it facilitates further signal wave proliferation with minimal Ca 2+ amplitude requirement, triggering protective defense responses throughout the plant. Our study reveals how plants build and perpetuate trans-cellular immune signal proliferation while avoiding disturbance of ongoing cellular signaling along the path of response dissemination.