Gene for pathogenicity and ability to cause the hypersensitive reaction cloned from Erwinia amylovora

A genomic library of Erwinia amylovora isolate T was constructed in the cosmid pLAFR3 and maintained in Escherichia coli. Clones were transferred individually by conjugation into the non-pathogenic isolate P66 of E. amylovora. Transconjugants were screened for restoration of pathogenicity to pear by stab inoculation into sections of immature pear fruits. Three clones complemented P66 restoring pathogenicity and ability to cause the hypersensitive reaction (HR) in Phaseolus vulgaris. Restriction mapping and hybridization experiments showed that the three clones had a common 3·7 kb fragment of E. amylovora DNA. Sub-cloning and insertion mutagenesis with Tn5-lac confirmed that a determinant of pathogenicity and ability to cause the HR (hrp gene) was located on a 2·1 kb HindIII/BamHI fragment within the common DNA. Hybridization experiments using the 2·1 kb HindIII/BamHI fragment as a probe demonstrated that the hrp gene was located in the chromosome of isolate T and that homologous sequences were present in the non-pathogenic isolates P66 and S. Clones which restored hrp function did not affect the growth of isolate P66 in minimal or nutrient-rich media. Transconjugants of Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola race 1 harbouring the hrp gene(s) cloned from E. amylovora did not cause the HR in susceptible cultivars of bean but symptoms developed more slowly than in the absence of the clones or with pLAFR3 alone.