Rpi-blb2 Gene-Mediated Late Blight Resistance in Plants

Phytophthora infestans is the causal agent of potato and tomato late blight, one of the most devastating plant diseases. P. infestans secretes effector proteins that are both modulators and targets of host plant immunity. Among these are the so-called RXLR effectors that function inside plant cells and are characterized by a conserved motif following the N-terminal signal peptide. In contrast, the effector activity is encoded by the C terminal region that follows the RXLR domain. Recently, I performed in planta functional profiling of different RXLR effector alleles. These genes were amplified from a variety of P. infestans isolates and cloned into a Potato virus X (PVX) vector for transient in planta expression. I assayed for R-gene specific induction of hypersensitive cell death. The findings included the discovery of new effector with avirulence activity towards the Solanum bulbocastanum Rpi-blb2 resistance gene. The Rpi-blb2 encodes a protein with a putative CC-NBS-LRR (a coiled-coil-nucleotide binding site and leucine-rich repeat) motif that confers Phytophthora late blight disease resistance. We examined the components required for Rpi-blb2-mediated resistance to P. infestans in Nicotiana benthamiana. Virus-induced gene silencing was used to repress candidate genes in N. benthamiana and to assay against P. infestans infections. NbSGT1 was required for disease resistance to P. infestans and hypersensitive responses (HRs) triggered by co-expression of AVRblb2 and Rpi-blb2 in N. benthamiana. RAR1 and HSP90 did not affect disease resistance or HRs in Rpi-blb2-transgenic plants. To elucidate the role of salicylic acid (SA) in Rpi-blb2-mediated resistance, we analyzed the response of NahG-transgenic plants following P. infestans infection. The increased susceptibility of Rpi-blb2-transgenic plants in the NahG background correlated with reduced SA and SA glucoside levels. Furthermore, Rpi-blb2-mediated HR cell death was associated with $H_2O_2$, but not SA, accumulation. SA affects basal defense and Rpi-blb2-mediated resistance against P. infestans. These findings provide evidence about the roles of SGT1 and SA signaling in Rpi-blb2-mediated resistance against P. infestans.