Isolation of ESTs from cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) leaves treated with inducers of the defense response. Journal   Plant cell reports. Citation   Plant Cell Rep. 23(6):404-13 Publication date   2004 Nov Authors   Verica JA Maximova SN Strem MD Carlson JE Bailey BA Guiltinan MJ Investigators   John Carlson Mark Guiltinan MeSH headings   Cacao Expressed Sequence Tags Plant Diseases Plant Leaves MeSH qualifiers   genetics metabolism Abstract   Pathogenic diseases represent a major constraint to the growth and yield of cacao (Theobroma cacao L.). Ongoing research on model plant systems has revealed that defense responses are activated via signaling pathways mediated by endogenous signaling molecules such as salicylic acid, jasmonic acid and ethylene. Activation of plant defenses is associated with changes in the expression of large numbers of genes. To gain a better understanding of defense responses in cacao, we have employed suppressive subtractive hybridization (SSH) cDNA libraries, macroarray hybridization analysis, high throughput DNA sequencing and bioinformatics to identify cacao genes induced by these signaling molecules. Additionally, we investigated gene activation by a phytotoxic elicitor-like protein, Nep1. We have identified a unigene set of 1,256 members, including 330 members representing genes induced during the defense response.