An aphid-resistance locus is tightly linked to the nematode-resistance gene, Mi, in tomato

Abstract

Tomato lines from diverse breeding programs were evaluated in the field for resistance to a natural infestation of the potato aphid, Macrosiphum euphorbiae, in Davis, CA. It was noted that all lines that carried the nematode-resistance gene, Mi, displayed aphid resistance. A greenhouse assay for aphid resistance was developed to investigate this relationship. Association of nematode and aphid resistances in near-isogenic lines suggested that these traits are tightly linked. Analysis of an F2 population segregating for nematode resistance indicated that aphid resistance segregated as a single major locus genetically linked to Mi. The name Meu1 is proposed for this locus. It is likely that Meu1 was introduced into tomato along with Mi from the wild species Lycopersicon peruvianum. The presence of aphid resistance in the line Motelle, which contains a very small region of introgressed DNA, and the lack of recombinants suggest that Meu1 is tightly linked to Mi or possibly is the same gene. The map-based strategy currently being used to clone Mi should be applicable to cloning Meu1.