Striga Germination Stimulant Analysis

Abstract

AbstractStriga is a flowering parasitic plant that can infect a broad range of crops including sorghum, maize and rice. The life cycle of Striga is intricately linked to its host, using host derived signals to initiate germination and attach to its host. Host susceptibility to Striga is thus directly correlated to the production and exudation of these signals. In this chapter we discuss the strigolactones, the most important class of Striga germination stimulants. We review the structural diversity of the strigolactones, their transport and biological relevance in plant and rhizosphere, and their importance for host specificity. In addition, we describe methods to analyse germination stimulant production by a Striga host: how to, reproducibly, collect the root exudate of a host, how to process these exudates, partially purify them and analyse them using analytical chemistry or a high-throughput image analysis-based germination bioassay.