The plant immune system – zig-zag model

Unlike vertebrates, plants lack specialized mobile immune cells and antibodies. However, it doesn’t mean that plants are not able to effectively defend themselves against pathogens. In the case of plants, almost every cell appears to be able of triggering an effective defense response thanks to the action of the immune system. The latter is well described by zig-zag model proposed by JD Jones and JL Dangle, which encompasses two branches of the plant immune system. Importantly, the zig-zag model, for the first time, has clearly presented the complex interplay between plants and their pathogens, moreover, it is extremely useful from a didactic point of view.