Plants can be colonized by fungi that have adopted highly diverse lifestyles, ranging from
symbiotic to necrotrophic. Colonization is governed in all systems by hundreds of secreted …

Fungi and oomycetes include deep and diverse lineages of eukaryotic plant pathogens. The
last 10 years have seen the sequencing of the genomes of a multitude of species of these so …

Biotrophic fungal plant pathogens establish an intimate relationship with their host to support
the infection process. Central to this strategy is the secretion of a range of protein effectors …

Host jumping is a process by which pathogens settle in new host groups. It is a cornerstone
in the evolution of pathogens, as it leads to pathogen diversification. It is unsurprising that …

Abstract Background Magnaporthe oryzae (anamorph Pyricularia oryzae) is the causal
agent of blast disease of Poaceae crops and their wild relatives. To understand the genetic …

A diversity of plant-associated organisms secrete effectors—proteins and metabolites that
modulate plant physiology to favor host infection and colonization. However, effectors can …

Downy mildews are a notorious group of oomycete plant pathogens, causing high economic
losses in various crops and ornamentals. The most species-rich genus of oomycetes is the …

Background Structural variation contributes substantially to polymorphism within species.
Chromosomal rearrangements that impact genes can lead to functional variation among …

Highlights•Plant pathogens produce effectors to interfere with host defences and
metabolism.•Effector genes are among the most rapidly evolving genes in pathogen …

This article is part of the Top 10 Unanswered Questions in MPMI invited review series. The
past few decades have seen major discoveries in the field of molecular plant-microbe …