Linking sensing to signaling during plant immunity

Plant defense against invading pathogens relies upon effective recognition of non-self organisms and a subsequent signaling response characterized by reprogramming of host gene expression and localized cell death to combat infection and provide resistance. At a molecular level, plant responses are initiated by the recognition of so-called effectors by intracellular receptors in a process known as effector-triggered immunity (ETI). While the importance of the recognition itself and the transcriptional reprogramming are well accepted, less is known about how the two are linked, i.e., how recognition is translated into resistance?