1Scottish Church College, Department of Botany, Kolkata-700006, India
2Molecular and Applied Mycology and Plant Pathology Laboratory, Department of Botany, University of Calcutta, Kolkata-700019, India
*Corresponding Author E-mail: krish_paper@yahoo.com
Online published on 28 October, 2015.
Chilli (Capsicum annuum L.), an economically important crop, suffers from many field and post harvest diseases. Traditional pesticide control is hazardous to the environment, giving rise to the search for alternatives. Our objective was to increase the innate defense molecules in chilli by an abiotic (calcium chloride) and biotic (chitosan) elicitors. Foliar applications of elicitors increased β-1, 3 glucanase, peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase, phenylalanine ammonia lyase, catalase and phenolics. Treatment with elicitors elicited production of nitric oxide, an important signalling molecule in plant defense. A single application of a nitric oxide donor increased all molecules of innate immunity supporting the role of nitric oxide as the signalling molecule for elicitor mediated increase of innate immunity.
β-1, 3 glucanase, calcium chloride, catalase, chitosan, phenolics, phenylalanine ammonia lyase, peroxidise, polyphenol oxidase
