Molecular cloning of a CC-NBS-LRR gene from Vitis quinquangularis and its expression pattern in response to downy mildew pathogen infection

Downy mildew, caused by Plasmopara viticola, can result in a substantial decrease in grapevine productivity. Vitis vinifera is a widely cultivated grapevine species, which is susceptible to this disease. Repeated pesticide applications are harmful for both the environment and human health. Thus, it is essential to develop varieties/cultivars that are resistant to downy mildew and other diseases. In our previous studies, we investigated the natural resistance of the Chinese wild grapevine V. quinquangularis accession 'PS' against P. viticola and obtained several candidate resistance (R) genes that may play important roles in plant disease resistance. In the present study, we isolated a CC-NBS-LRR-type R gene from 'PS' and designated it VqCN. Its open reading frame is 2676 bp which encodes a protein of 891 amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 102.12 kDa and predicted isoelectric point of 6.53. Multiple alignments with other disease resistant (R) proteins revealed a conserved phosphate-binding loop (P-loop), resistance nucleotide binding site, a hydrophobic domain (GLPL) and methionine-histidine-aspartate (MHD) motifs, which are typical components of nucleotide-binding site leucine-rich repeat proteins, as well as a coiled-coil region in the N-terminus. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that the transcript of VqCN was rapidly and highly induced after infection with P. viticola in 'PS'. Moreover, the leaves of susceptible 'Cabernet Sauvignon' transiently expressing VqCN manifested increased resistance to P. viticola. The results indicated that VqCN might play a positive role in protecting grapevine against infection with P. viticola. Cloning and functional analysis of a putative resistance gene provide a basis for disease-resistance breeding.