Biochemical aspects of interactions between fungi and plants: a case study of fusarium in oats

Disclosing the mechanisms that build up plant resistance to fungal diseases (pathogenic microorganisms) invariably evokes the need to analyze biochemical factors of resistance. Protective mechanisms are associated with a fairly large number of chemical compounds. Fusarium head blight (FHB) affects cereal grains, including wheat, barley and oats. In this work, we report new data on the metabolic profile of oat grains, as influenced by FHB, and a relationship between plant resistance and content of individual metabolites in FHB-susceptible and FHB-resistant varieties. Here, we have challenged the task to assess the connections of FHB-resistance parameters in oat varieties with as many compounds as possible. Such data are required both to understand the mechanisms of resistance and to develop methods for its assessment. Common oat ( Avena sativa L.) varieties from the collection of the Vavilov Institute (VIR) were studied to evaluate their numerous biochemical characters and their resistance to FHB...