The tomato Cf-2 disease resistance locus comprises two functional genes encoding leucine-rich repeat proteins

Abstract

In plants, resistance to pathogens is frequently determined by dominant resistance genes, whose products are proposed to recognize pathogen-encoded avirulence gene (Avr) products. The tomato resistance locus Cf-2 was isolated by positional cloning and found to contain two almost identical genes, each conferring resistance to isolates of tomato leaf mould (C. fulvum) expressing the corresponding Avr2 gene. The two Cf-2 genes encode protein products that differ from each other by only three amino acids and contain 38 leucine-rich repeat (LRR) motifs. Of the LRRs, 20 show extremely conserved alternating repeats. The C-terminus of Cf-2 carries regions of pronounced homology to the protein encoded by the unlinked Cf-9 gene. We suggest that this conserved region interacts with other proteins involved in activating plant defense mechanisms.