Insights into auxin signaling in plant-pathogen interactions.

The phytohormone auxin has been known to be a regulator of plant growth and development ever since its discovery. Recent studies on plant-pathogen interactions identify auxin as a key character in pathogenesis and plant defense. Like plants, diverse pathogens possess the capacity to synthesize indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), the major form of auxin in plants. The emerging knowledge on auxin-signaling components, auxin metabolic processes, and indole-derived phytoalexins in plant responses to pathogen invasion has provided putative mechanisms of IAA in plant susceptibility and resistance to non-gall- or tumor-inducing pathogens.