Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 30, 2026

Using RNA-interference to Investigate the Innate Immune Response in Mouse Macrophages
Published on: November 3, 2014
RNA Interference: A Natural Immune System of Plants to Counteract Biotic Stressors
Tayeb Muhammad1, Fei Zhang2, Yan Zhang3
1College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China. tayebmuhammad@nwsuaf.edu.cn.
Abstract:
During plant-pathogen interactions, plants have to defend the living transposable elements from pathogens. In response to such elements, plants activate a variety of defense mechanisms to counteract the aggressiveness of biotic stressors. RNA interference (RNAi) is a key biological process in plants to inhibit gene expression both transcriptionally and post-transcriptionally, using three different groups of proteins to resist the virulence of pathogens. However, pathogens trigger an anti-silencing mechanism through the expression of suppressors to block host RNAi. The disruption of the silencing mechanism is a virulence strategy of pathogens to promote infection in the invaded hosts. In this review, we summarize the RNA silencing pathway, anti-silencing suppressors, and counter-defenses of plants to viral, fungal, and bacterial pathogens.
Related Concept Videos
RNA Interference
This process occurs naturally in cells, often through the activity of genomically-encoded microRNAs. Researchers can take advantage of this mechanism by introducing synthetic RNAs to deactivate specific genes for research or therapeutic purposes. For example, RNAi could be used...
Interference and Diffraction
Types of Stressors
Catastrophes
Catastrophes refer to large-scale, unpredictable events that create overwhelming stress and a sense of threat. Examples include natural disasters like...
Plant Breeding and Biotechnology
Nature and Nurture
What is the Immune System?

