A team of researchers from Kanazawa University, Ehime University, and
Nagoya University, has shown how nicotinamide (NIM) could help reduce or
prevent Fusarium head blight inwheat
[www.isaaa.org]
boost plant immune system.

NIM is a natural substance that can help stimulate the immune system in
plants. It is found in food and used as a dietary supplement. The team
pre-treated the spikes, which carry the grains of wheat plants with NIM
and then inoculated the plant with conidia of/Fusarium graminearum/to
induce head blight. The researchers found that pre-treated plants have
lesser fungal biomass and produce lesser mycotoxins compared with
water-treated wheat. The researchers also used metabolomics to analyze
the contents of the compounds in the plants. They found that the
pre-treated NIM plants have high amounts of antimicrobial and
antioxidant compounds in the 375 substances observed.

The results of the study showed how NIM could activate the plant's
immune response and boost its defense-related compounds against fungal
and microbial diseases similar to how vaccines work in humans. The study
could also lead to a more novel approach to controlling plant diseases
in agriculture.

Nicotinamide can �??immunize�?� plants to protect from fungal disease. |
Kanazawa University (kanazawa-u.ac.jp)
[www.kanazawa-u.ac.jp]