Newly discovered enzyme is 'firing pin' for plant immunity
Monday, September 17, 2018 - 14:55
in Biology & Nature
Just like humans, plants have an immune system that helps them fight off infections. Plant immunity has some important differences: they don't make antibodies and can't fight off the same bug more quickly months or years later. However, plant cells can identify pathogens and react to them, often by producing a burst of reactive oxygen which is toxic to bacteria or fungi. Cells around an infected site will go into programmed cell death to seal off the disease.