Arabidopsis leucine-rich repeat receptor–like kinase NILR1 is required for induction of innate immunity to parasitic nematodes

Plant-parasitic nematodes are destructive pests causing losses of billions of dollars annually. An effective plant defence against pathogens relies on the recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) by surface-localised receptors leading to the activation of PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI). Extensive studies have been conducted to characterise the role of PTI in various models of plant-pathogen interactions. However, far less is known about the role of PTI in roots in general and in plant-nematode interactions in particular. Here we show that nematode-derived proteinaceous elicitor/s is/are capable of inducing PTI in Arabidopsis in a manner dependent on the common immune co-receptor BAK1. Consistent with the role played by BAK1, we identified a leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase, termed NILR1 that is specifically regulated upon infection by nematodes. We show that NILR1 is essential for PTI responses initiated by nematodes and nilr1 loss-of-function mutants are hypersusceptible to a broad category of nematodes. To our knowledge, NILR1 is the first example of an immune receptor that is involved in induction of basal immunity (PTI) in plants or in animals in response to nematodes. Manipulation of NILR1 will provide new options for nematode control in crop plants in future

Energy efficiency and ecological benefits of a self-heated CFRP tool designed for resin transfer moulding

Due to the continuously growing ecological requirements in the aerospace industry in service as well as in the production, solutions for more environmentally friendly product life cycles have to be developed. The ecological effectiveness of manufacturing helicopter rotor blades out of carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) using a self-heated CFRP tool for resin transfer moulding (RTM) is investigated. The energy consumption and the resulting ecological impact are compared to the state of the art technology, an aluminium series prodcution tool for the Prepreg technology. Through a power measurement during the use-phase, the energy consumption is determined for both tools. The ecological benefit is evaluated through a life cycle assessment (LCA), regarding four common impact categories. The measurements prove that a self-heated CFRP tool can lead to significant energy savings of 87 % during the use-phase. Combined with a RTM process also a cycle time reduction of 41 % c an be achieved. In addition the LCA identifies a saving potential of over 40 % in all regarded impact categories. In summary the investigations demonstrate that curing of composite structures is ecologically worthwhile with a self-heated CFRP tool