Plants perceive a variety of molecules produced by microbes, insects, and nematodes. These pathogen-derived components include so-called microbe-associated molecular patterns, or MAMPs, as well as effector proteins that are secreted to the exterior or interior of plant cells and these molecules can be recognized by receptor protein complexes on the exterior or interior of plant cells, thereby activating MAMP- or effector-triggered immunity (MTI or ETI, respectively). Because these processes are key components of plant disease resistance, they have been studied intensively. We are now in a golden age of ETI and MTI research, in which mechanistic and evolutionary understanding of both processes is emerging rapidly. Accordingly, in this Focus issue , we explore diverse aspects of MTI and ETI, with a unifying theme of integration at multiple levels.