The MIC-3 gene family was originally identified as a root-specific 14-kDa protein that accumulated specifically within the immature galls of root-knot nematode (RKN; Meloidogyne incognita) resistant plants having the qMi-C11 and qMi-C14 QTL at an early timepoint in the RKN infection process (Callahan et al., 1997; Zhang et al., 2002; Wubben et al., 2008). This evidence concerns the gene SHMT1 and infection.