The Tottori International Symposia on Host-Specific Toxins were established in 1988 by the Tottori University Faculty of Agriculture to provide an interdisciplinary forum for scientists working in rapidly emerging areas of studies of plant-fungal pathogen interactions, especially involving host-specific toxins and related pathogenicity factors. This work presents the proceedings of the 3rd International Symposium on Host-Specific Toxins held in August 1997 in Tottori, Japan. Up-to-date material is presented in rapidly developing research areas such as new toxins, fungal genes for toxin biosynthesis, evolution of pathogenic strategies, toxin actions on plants, toxin receptors, signal transduction, oxidative burst, mechanisms of sensing, penetration and host degradation, apoptosis triggered by toxins, and plant genes for detoxification. This information has given researchers insights into various aspects in the field. This work represents a reference for researchers and students in the areas of plant pathology, plant protection, plant physiology and molecular biology, fungal molecular genetics, and plant breeding and biotechnology.
