Molecular Markers Associated with Ph -3 Gene Conferring Late Blight Resistance in Tomato

Abstract

Late blight (LB), caused by the oomycete Phytophthora infestans, is one of the most devastating diseases of tomato. Three major genes Ph-1, Ph-2 and Ph-3 conferring resistance to LB have been identified and mapped to the chromosomes 7, 10 and 9, respectively. However, PCR-based molecular markers associated with these genes are limited. Molecular markers are extremely useful in the screening and selection of tomato lines for the development of LB resistant genotypes. The objective of this study was to identify molecular markers associated with Ph-3 gene conferring LB resistance in tomato. Four co-dominant markers were found to be associated with Ph-3, all of which were sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) type. Breeding lines and cultivars were inoculated with a field isolate of Phytophthora infestans to collect phenotypic data on disease resistance. Genotypic data from molecular markers associated with Ph-3 were in close agreement with the phenotypic data for the lines tested. With the verification of genotypic data from novel molecular markers in known genotypes supported by phenotypic data, the novel molecular markers may be useful in screening tomato populations aiming to develop LB resistant genotypes or cloning the LB resistant genes.