Plant–Pathogen Molecular Dialogue: Evolution, Mechanisms and Agricultural Implementation

Abstract

Abstract Plant diseases persistently challenge sustainable crop production worldwide. The most economical and eco-friendly way to effectively deal with this problem is to breed new cultivars with stable and durable resistance. Current progress towards this goal has been reinforced by considerable advancements in the molecular studies of pathogens and host plants. These advancements have greatly benefited from recently developed methods to research into gene structure and activity, especially the “omics” technologies. These steps forward are vividly represented by the case of late blight, which is economically the most important disease of potato and tomato (Solanum L.). Late blight became a popular model of multidimensional plant-microbe interactions, and newly obtained molecular evidence has considerably reshaped both our vision of plant–pathogen molecular dialogue and our approach to mitigating this disease. Drawing on recent publications, this review will focus on genome of the causal agent of disease, the oomycete Phytophthora infestans (Mont.) de Bary, and its already characterized genes of virulence, with particular emphasis on their evolution, which underlines the exceptional genetic and phenotypic plasticity of this pathogen. Specially highlighted is the diversity of the immediate tools of virulence—effectors, which interact with potato target molecules, alter host physiology and facilitate plant colonization. Turning to plant defense barriers, the reviewer elaborates on the polymorphism and evolution of Solanum genes providing for plant resistance to P. infestans. The repertoire of P. infestans virulence genes in agrocenoses and the diversity of resistance genes in potato wild relatives are explored as regards the agriculture-oriented implementation of new molecular knowledge. The multifaceted approach to late blight combines the search for new resistance genes in genetic collections, the characterization of their function and stacking these genes in potato cultivars in order to breed new donors of long-lasting and durable resistance together with express assessment of pathogen virulence genes.