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Rpi-vnt1.1, a Tm-2² Homolog from Solanum venturii, Confers Resistance to Potato Late Blight

Despite the efforts of breeders and the extensive use of fungicide control measures, late blight still remains a major threat to potato cultivation worldwide. The introduction of genetic resistance into cultivated potato is considered a valuable method to achieve durable resistance to late blight. Here, we report the identification and cloning of Rpi-vnt1.1, a previously uncharacterized late-blight resistance gene from Solanum venturii. The gene was identified by a classical genetic and physical mapping approach and encodes a coiled-coil nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat protein with high similarity to Tm-2² from S. lycopersicum which confers resistance against Tomato mosaic virus. Transgenic potato and tomato plants carrying Rpi-vnt1.1 were shown to be resistant to Phytophthora infestans. Of 11 P. infestans isolates tested, only isolate EC1 from Ecuador was able to overcome Rpi-vnt1.1 and cause disease on the inoculated plants. Alleles of Rpi-vnt1.1 (Rpi-vnt1.2 and Rpi-vnt1.3) that differed by only a few nucleotides were found in other late-blight-resistant accessions of S. venturii. The late blight resistance gene Rpi-phu1 from S. phureja is shown here to be identical to Rpi-vnt1.1, suggesting either that this strong resistance gene has been maintained since a common ancestor, due to selection pressure for blight resistance, or that genetic exchange between S. venturii and S. phureja has occurred at some time.