RNA-binding proteins orchestrating immunity in plants

RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) direct the function and fate of RNA throughout the RNA lifecycle and play important roles in plant immunity, orchestrating the post-transcriptional reprogramming of the transcriptome following induction of plant immune responses, a process that we term ‘RBP-mediated immunity’. Although the importance of specific RBPs in plant immunity has been known for many years, this field of research is rapidly expanding as new techniques for global profiling of protein–RNA interactions, together with techniques such as ribosomal profiling and metabolic profiling to monitor mRNA translation and turnover and advanced imaging techniques to study RNA and protein structure and localisation, are uncovering new RBPs and providing new insight into the role of RBPs in plant–microbe interactions. Here we discuss the regulatory roles of RBPs during the RNA lifecycle, with a particular focus on post-transcriptional processes and how RBP functions alter plants' immunological profile in response to cellular pathogens, drawing both on studies of specific RBPs and insights from global profiling approaches. Unsurprisingly, given their central role in plant immune responses, RBPs can also be targeted by pathogens and therefore represent one of the plant's Achilles' heels. We therefore also review emerging evidence for RBP-mediated susceptibility in plants. Together, knowledge regarding the regulation, specificity and function of immune-related RBPs can inform plant-breeding programmes to generate crops with increased disease resistance.