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Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), named for its role in inhibiting macrophage/monocyte migration, has multiple functions in modulation of inflammation, cell proliferation, angiogenesis, and tumorigenesis in vertebrates. Although homologs of this gene can be found in plants, the function of MIF in plants remains obscure. Here, we characterized <i>Ta</i>MIF1 in <i>Triticum aestivum</i> resembling the MIF secreted from <i>Homo sapiens</i>. Transcript analysis revealed that <i>TaMIF1</i> responded to stripe rust infection of wheat and was upregulated during the infection stage. <i>Ta</i>MIF1 was localized to both the cytosol and nuclei in wheat mesophyll protoplast. Additionally, <i>Ta</i>MIF1 possessed significant tautomerase activity, indicating conservation of MIFs across kingdoms. <i>Agrobacterium tumefaciens</i> infiltration assay demonstrated that <i>Ta</i>MIF1 was capable of suppressing programmed cell death hinting its role in plant immunity. Heterologous expression of <i>Ta</i>MIF1 increased fission yeast sensitivity to oxidative stress. Silencing <i>TaMIF1</i> decreased the susceptibility of wheat to <i>Pst</i> seemingly through increasing reactive oxygen species accumulation. In conclusion, functions of the <i>Ta</i>MIF1 were investigated in this study, which provides significant insight into understanding the role of MIFs across kingdoms.