This study provides evidence that endo-borneol in Pinus koraiensis needle leachates enhances Panax ginseng resistance to Alternaria leaf spot. Endo-borneol exhibits multifaceted functions in disease suppression, both by directly activating defense-related pathways and indirectly by modifying root secretions to recruit beneficial microbes, thus priming induced systemic resistance and inhibiting pathogen growth at higher concentrations.

Plants are often simultaneously stressed by both UV radiation and phosphorus deficiency in agricultural ecosystems. This study provides evidence that, to cope with these threats in a coordinated manner, plants employ a reciprocal antagonistic strategy controlled by the phosphate starvation response proteins (PHRs). This adaptive strategy is conserved across plant lineages from chlorophytes to gymnosperms and angiosperms, and reducing P supply or increasing PHR activity can improve plant UV tolerance.

This study provides evidence that jasmonic acid mediates retrograde signaling under mitochondrial translational stress via the COI1–MYC2–ERF109 module, which contributes to the repression of plant growth and activates plant resistance to biotic stress, helping the plant to balance growth and defense.