Progress and Challenges in Elucidating the Functional Role of Effectors in the Soybean-Phytophthora sojae Interaction

Abstract

Phytophthora sojae, the agent responsible for stem and root rot, is one of the most damaging plant pathogens of soybean. To establish a compatible-interaction, P. sojae secretes a wide array of effector proteins into the host cell. These effectors have been shown to act either in the apoplastic area or the cytoplasm of the cell to manipulate the host cellular processes in favor of the development of the pathogen. Deciphering effector-plant interactions is important for understanding the role of P. sojae effectors in disease progression and developing approaches to prevent infection. Here, we review the subcellular localization, the host proteins, and the processes associated with P. sojae effectors. We also discuss the emerging topic of effectors in the context of effector-resistance genes interaction, as well as model systems and recent developments in resources and techniques that may provide a better understanding of the soybean-P. sojae interaction.

A rapid molecular diagnostic tool to discriminate alleles of avirulence genes and haplotypes of Phytophthora sojae using high‐resolution melting analysis

“…Avirulence ( Avr ) genes of P. sojae encode effector proteins that are expressed only during infection, and most of them contain RxLR and DEER domains believed to be required for translocation (Dou et al., 2008, 2010; Whisson et al., 2007). When a soybean Rps recognizes the corresponding Avr from P. sojae , plant defence reactions are triggered, resulting in disease resistance (Madina et al., 2022). Overexploitation of single Rps genes in the field exerts a strong selection pressure against the avirulent isolates, which in turn enrich the selection of genetic variants of Avr genes or its regulatory elements favouring virulence (Arsenault‐Labrecque et al., 2018).…”