The gene expression in eukaryotic is regulated by chromatin structure.Epigenetic markers (like DNA methylation and histone modification) play an important role in the defense responses of plant.For example,plant DNA methylation patterns can be altered by pathogen infection,and pathogen-induced locus-specific demethylation can influence the expression of defense genes.Histone deacetylases (HDACs) promote defense responses against pathogens depended on jasmonic acid (JA) pathway.Furthermore,the chromatin remodeling complexes Swr1 may be targeted to gene promoters by the recognition of histone acetylation patterns and DNA motifs,which inhibited the expression of salicylic acid (SA)-sensitive genes.In this review,we focused on the underlying mechanisms of plant-pathogen interaction and the latest advances of epigenetics,such as DNA methylation,histone acetylation,histone methylation and chromatin remodeling.