Abstract:Root exudates act as the bridge between plant, soil and pathogen, and they are also the key ecological factors determining the relationship between pathogens and crops, thus, can influence the occurrence and development of soil-borne diseases. In this paper, the concept, components and generation mechanisms of root exudates were summarized. Then, the relationship between root exudates and soil-borne diseases was mainly reviewed from the following four aspects:1) the relationship between allelochemicals in root exudates and soil-borne diseases; 2) the effects of root exudates on soil-borne diseases by attracting rhizosphere microorganisms; 3) the effects of root exudates on soil-borne diseases by affecting the abundance of pathogens; and 4) the effects of root exudates on soil-borne diseases by affecting rhizosphere soil environment. Next, the direction and emphases of the future research were prospected in terms of the study methods and areas, which included developing the methods of in-situ collecting, real-time monitoring and quantifying the root exudates, establishing an open database which shows the plant-root exudates-microbial community composition and function that the root exudates regulated-diseases relationships by using omics technology, the interaction between rhizosphere pathogens and other microbes, and the threshold of pathogen concentration in the rhizosphere that can cause plant diseases. These efforts will provide a basis for disclosing the occurrence principle and control technology of soil-borne diseases.