Crucial Roles of Effectors in Interactions between Horticultural Crops and Pathogens

Horticultural crops suffer from bacterial, fungal, and oomycete pathogens. Effectors are one of the main weapons deployed by those pathogens, especially in the early stages of infection. Pathogens secrete effectors with diverse functions to avoid recognition by plants, inhibit or manipulate plant immunity, and induce programmed cell death. Most identified effectors are proteinaceous, such as the well-studied type-III secretion system effectors (T3SEs) in bacteria, RXLR and CRN (crinkling and necrosis) motif effectors in oomycetes, and LysM (lysin motifs) domain effectors in fungi. In addition, some non-proteinaceous effectors such as toxins and sRNA also play crucial roles in infection. To cope with effectors, plants have evolved specific mechanisms to recognize them and activate effector-triggered immunity (ETI). This review summarizes the functions and mechanisms of action of typical proteinaceous and non-proteinaceous effectors secreted by important horticultural crop pathogens. The defense responses of plant hosts are also briefly introduced. Moreover, potential application of effector biology in disease management and the breeding of resistant varieties is discussed.