Biological Interactions Between Defense-Related Plant Hormones in Physcomitrella patens and the Fungal Pathogen Pythium irregulare

Indianapolis, IN

My project investigates the relationship between the defense-related plant hormone, salicylic acid, and the moss Physcomitrella patensupon being infected with a plant pathogen. One aspect of this experiment is quantifying salicylic acid via HPLC-MS/MS in the moss tissue to better understand the extent in which these hormones affect the plant's immune system. To activate the moss's defense system I exposed the moss to the fungal pathogen Pythium irregulare as well as the elicitor chitosan. From previous experiments researchers have seen a positive correlation between the expression of defense-related genes and the hormones that trigger the systemic acquired resistance response (SAR). Therefore, my prediction was that an increase in expression of the ICR and PAL genes expressed during an infection will correlate to an increase in salicylic acid concentration in the plant tissue. Besides inhibiting the proliferation of the pathogenic infection in the non-vascular moss, these hormones contribute to the immune response of many important vascular agricultural plants. Therefore, the findings gained in this study may ultimately help increase yields by reducing the crops that succumb to infection.