This may only control or slow

down pathogen spread, as pathogen-derived virulence molecules may suppress plant defense responses, thus allowing the pathogen to successfully invade the plant. Endophytic plant-fungus interactions lead to sequencial cytoplasmic and nuclear calcium elevations resulting in a better plant performance. Factors influencing the specificity of calcium response include calcium signature, amplitude, duration, frequency and location, selective activation LY333531 purchase of calcium channels in cellular membranes, and stimulation of calcium-dependent signalling components (Vadassery and Oelmüller 2009). Furthermore, individual fungal species are able to extend the symbiotic continuum by expressing either mutualistic or pathogenic interactions

depending on host genotype (Redman et al. 2001). For example, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides RXDX-101 ic50 was identified as a pathogen of strawberry, but as a mutualist in tomato plants (Redman et al. 2001; Rodriguez and Redman 2008). On the other hand, molecular mechanisms involved in marine invertebrate-microbial associations were found to include selective receptor-ligand interactions through highly specific immunological cross-reactions by which the host permits the symbiotic microorganism to recognize its specific point of colonization and retains it there (Selvin et al. 2010). This recognition and maintenance of specific symbiotic microorganisms by the marine host are achieved by production of sponge lectins (Müller et al. 1981), surface glycans (McFall-Ngai 1994), or antibiosis where symbionts are able to adapt to antibiotics produced by the host (Foster et al. 2000).

Interestingly, pathogenic coral microbes were detected in apparently healthy sponge tissues of Agelas tubulata and Amphimedon compressa from Florida reefs (Negandhi et al. 2010). Similarly, Aspergillus sydowii, a pathogen Farnesyltransferase of gorgonian sea fans, was isolated from healthy Spongia obscura collected in the Bahamas. This may indicate that, in analogy to endphytic fungi, marine-derived fungi are able to express mutualistic or pathogenic interactions depending on the colonized host. Alternatively, these disease-associated microbes may be opportunists, which infect only stressed coral tissues (Ein-Gil et al. 2009). Unravelling silent biosynthetic pathways The production of numerous potentially valuable compounds by microorganisms occurs only under specific conditions and hence researchers often fail to detect them upon culturing the producing organism on standardized laboratory media. The reason may be a large metabolic background or unfavourable culture conditions. It may also be that corresponding biosynthesis genes for such “cryptic” or “orphan” pathways are not expressed in the laboratory, due to lack of signal molecules, or that encoded secondary metabolites have very low production rates and thus escape detection.