1. Antifungal Activity of Ribosome-Inactivating Proteins.
- Author
-
Iglesias R, Citores L, Gay CC, and Ferreras JM
- Subjects
- Plant Proteins pharmacology, Plant Proteins genetics, Fungi drug effects, Plant Diseases microbiology, Plant Diseases prevention & control, Plants, Genetically Modified, Animals, Fungicides, Industrial pharmacology, Ribosome Inactivating Proteins pharmacology, Antifungal Agents pharmacology
- Abstract
The control of crop diseases caused by fungi remains a major problem and there is a need to find effective fungicides that are environmentally friendly. Plants are an excellent source for this purpose because they have developed defense mechanisms to cope with fungal infections. Among the plant proteins that play a role in defense are ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs), enzymes obtained mainly from angiosperms that, in addition to inactivating ribosomes, have been studied as antiviral, fungicidal, and insecticidal proteins. In this review, we summarize and discuss the potential use of RIPs (and other proteins with similar activity) as antifungal agents, with special emphasis on RIP/fungus specificity, possible mechanisms of antifungal action, and the use of RIP genes to obtain fungus-resistant transgenic plants. It also highlights the fact that these proteins also have antiviral and insecticidal activity, which makes them very versatile tools for crop protection., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
- Published
- 2024
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