Cell biology

Molecular biology

Biology

Cell culture

Priming (agriculture)

Biochemistry

Botany

Computational biology

Immunology

Genetics

Immune system

Chemistry

Microtiter plate

High-throughput screening

Germination

BIO-PROTOCOL

Defense priming describes the enhanced potency of cells to activate defense responses. Priming accompanies local and systemic immune responses and can be triggered by microbial infection or upon treatment with certain chemicals. Thus, chemically activating defense priming is promising for biomedicine and agriculture. However, test systems for spotting priming-inducing chemicals are rare. Here, we describe a high-throughput screen for compounds that prime microbial pattern-spurred secretion of antimicrobial furanocoumarins in parsley culture cells. For the best possible throughput, we perform the assay with 1-ml aliquots of cell culture in 24-well microtiter plates. The advantages of the non-invasive test over competitive assays are its simplicity, remarkable reliability, and high sensitivity, which is based on furanocoumarin fluorescence in UV light.

High-throughput Screening for Defense Priming-inducing Compounds in Parsley Cell Cultures