ABSTRACT
Neuroactive compounds, including acetylcholine and biogenic amines, are synthesized by microorganisms that inhabit the surface and the tissues of plants and behave as plant commensals, symbionts, and/or parasites. This short review focuses on the potential impact of microbial neurochemicals on the host plant organism with respect to physiological, morphogenetic, and bioenergetic processes. Since the microbiota–host system is characterized by bidirectional communication, plant host-produced neurochemicals are expected to exert specific stimulatory, modifying, or inhibitory effects on the microbiota.
