Intracellular Proteases and Resistance in Plants (original) (raw)

In order to understand the potential role of intracellular proteolytic enzymes in the mechanism of herbicide and insect resistance in plants, we have compared the levels of activity of a representative range of protease types (acid, neutral & alkaline proteinases & peptidases) in plant tissues from herbicide resistant and susceptible biotypes of the weed species Chenopodium album, Amaranthus retroflexus and Lolium rigidum and insect resistant (Rathu Heenati) and susceptible (TN1) cultivars of rice (Oryza sativa). The activities of many protease types were significantly higher (typically by 1.5-3 fold) in both herbicide and insect resistant plant cultivars, suggesting that these enzymes may play a significant role in the defence against stress in plants.