Phytoactive chinin derivatives

Theoretical and practical aspects of responses of plant tissues to chitin derivatives are reviewed. Acetylated oligosaccharides were shown to interact with highly specific receptors of cell membranes, whereas nonacetylated oligosaccharides cause nonspecific effects on the membrane phospholipid structures. A new class of nodulation-inducing signal molecules synthesized from chitin oligosaccharides is considered, and evidence for their involvement in embryogenesis of plants and eukaryotes in general is reviewed.