Rmg8 and Rmg7, wheat genes for resistance to the wheat blast fungus, recognize the same avirulence gene AVR-Rmg8.

Rmg8 and Rmg7 are genes for resistance to the wheat blast fungus (Pyricularia oryzae), located on chromosome 2B in hexaploid wheat and chromosome 2A in tetraploid wheat, respectively. AVR-Rmg8, an avirulence gene corresponding to Rmg8, was isolated from a wheat blast isolate through a map-based strategy. The cloned fragment encoded a small protein containing a putative signal peptide. AVR-Rmg8 was recognized not only by Rmg8, but also by Rmg7, suggesting that these two resistance genes are equivalent to a single gene from the viewpoint of resistance breeding.