Damage Control: Cellular Logic in the Root Immune Response

Abstract

The organizational principles of the root immune system are largely uncharacterized. In the February 6, 2020 issue of Cell, Zhou et al. showed roots are built entirely by immunocompetent cells that require distinct instructions to unlock cell-autonomous immune programs. A root cell's developmental identity combined with its spatial distribution fine-tunes immune signal sensitivity, enabling sector-specific immune responses.