Contribution of RipS type III effector family of Ralstonia solanacearum Japanese strain OE1-1 to disease development in eggplant

Among Ralstonia solanacearum type III effectors, there is a multiprotein family called RipS. To evaluate the combined contribution of the whole gene family, we constructed a ripS-null mutant of strain OE1-1 of R. solanacearum, which multiplied less in leaves and was less virulent in eggplant than OE1-1. Three mutants with only one ripS gene were more virulent and multiplied more than the ripS-null mutant in eggplants, suggesting that RipS1, RipS4, and RipS5 are more critical than the other RipS effectors. Virulence of the ripS-null mutant in tobacco and tomato differed from that in eggplant.