Flagellin

Biotic elicitors act as chemical signals that activate plant defenses. These elicitors can induce plant defense responses such as cell wall strengthening, reactive oxygen species, expression of pathogenesis-related proteins, and ethylene biosynthesis. Flagellin (subunit involved in building bacterial flagella) extended its elicitor activity from bacterial sources. This chapter compiles information on the extraction and purification of flagellin using ultracentrifugation and the separation techniques involved such as anion exchange chromatography and SDS-PAGE. The characterization of flagellin protein is further elaborated using MALDI-TOF/TOF analysis to provide details of the mass/charge ratio of the isolated flagellin protein.