title: Q&A: What are strigolactones and why are they important to plants and soil microbes?
abstract: What are strigolactones? Strigolactones are signaling compounds made by plants. They have two main functions: first, as endogenous hormones to control plant development, and second as components of root exudates to promote symbiotic interactions between plants and soil microbes. Some plants that are parasitic on other plants have established a third function, which is to stimulate germination of their seeds when in close proximity to the roots of a suitable host plant. It is this third function that led to the original discovery and naming of strigolactones.
authors.affiliation: ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Western Australia. steven.smith@uwa.edu.au.
authors.forename: Steven M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D000383:Agriculture; D007783:Lactones / Q000494:pharmacology*; D059828:Plant Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D063245:Plant Development / Q000187:drug effects; D057685:Plant Weeds / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010944:Plants / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000382:microbiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D013559:Symbiosis / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D007783:Lactones