JAV1 Controls Jasmonate-Regulated Plant Defense

Plants evolve effective mechanisms to protect themselves from environmental stresses and employ jasmonates as vital defense signals to defend against insect attack and pathogen infection. Jasmonates are also recognized as an essential growth regulator by which diverse developmental processes are mediated. Despite substantial research, there are no key signaling components reported yet to control jasmonate-regulated plant defense independent of developmental responses. We identify JAV1, a key gene in the jasmonate pathway, which functions as a negative regulator to control plant defense but does not play a detectable role in plant development. Our results suggest that when encountering insect attack and pathogen infection, plants accumulate jasmonates that trigger JAV1 degradation via the 26S proteasome to activate defensive gene expression and elevate resistances against both insects and pathogens. These findings have provided insight into the molecular mechanism by which plants integrate jasmonate signals to protect themselves from insect attack and pathogen infection.