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Protease Inhibitors in Improvement of Plant Resistance to Pathogens and Insects

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Abstract

This review concerns the possibility of using plant inhibitors of proteolytic enzymes to improve plant resistance to insects and phytopathogens. The main argument in favor of this approach is that protease inhibitors are widespread in plant tissues and highly active with respect to various proteases of insects, bacteria, and fungi. Genetic engineering yields promising results in the field, as recent studies demonstrate. The main drawbacks of the approach and ways to improve its efficiency are discussed. Still, the approach has several advantages over the standard methods and is ecologically safe.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Belozersky Institute of Physicochemical Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow, 119992, Russia

    Ya. E. Dunaevsky, E. N. Elpidina, K. S. Vinokurov & M. A. Belozersky

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  1. Ya. E. Dunaevsky
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  2. E. N. Elpidina
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  3. K. S. Vinokurov
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__________

Translated from Molekulyarnaya Biologiya, Vol. 39, No. 4, 2005, pp. 702–708.

Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Dunaevsky, Elpidina, Vinokurov, Belozersky.

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Dunaevsky, Y.E., Elpidina, E.N., Vinokurov, K.S. et al. Protease Inhibitors in Improvement of Plant Resistance to Pathogens and Insects. Mol Biol 39, 608–613 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11008-005-0076-y

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