Allelopathic resistance to Phytophthora cajani in pigeon pea is associated with enhanced biosynthesis and release of antimicrobial secondary metabolites (phenolic acids, flavonoids, isoflavonoids, and terpenoid derivatives) suppressed pathogen growth and zoospore viability. In this study, RNA sequencing RNA-seq was done to investigate transcriptomic changes in resistant ICP-7035 and susceptible ICP-2376 genotypes 24 h afterinfection. A total of 45,672 genes were expressed, among which 3,847 genes were differentially expressed between the two genotypes. Gene Ontology GO and KEGG pathway analyses revealed significant enrichment in defence-related processes, including plant-pathogen interaction, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis and MAPK signalling pathways. Main resistance genes NB-LRR proteins, pathogenesis-related proteins, transcription factors WRKY, MYB, and enzymes involved in secondary metabolism, were identified. The quantitative real-time PCR, showed strong agreement with RNA-seq data. This study provides valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying Phytophthora resistance in pigeon pea and identifies potential target genes for functional validation and marker-assisted breeding to improve disease resistance.
Yadav et al. (2026) studied this question.