• Transgenic Expression of antibacterial proteins AP24, Lisozyme and Dermaseptine in Solanum tuberosum (var. Spunta) plants confers broad spectrum resistance to pathogens

RIVERO, MARÍA MERCEDES; MENCACCI, NICOLÁS; FURMAN, NICOLÁS; BRAVO-ALMONACID, FERNANDO Y MENTABERRY, A

Beijing, China.

Congreso; Congress on Biotechnology and Sustainable agriculture. International Association for Plant Tissue Culture & Biotechnology (IAPTC).; 2006

Engineered resistance to micro-organisms represents a promising approach for generating broad-spectrum pathogen-resistant potato plants.  Solanum tuberosum (var. spunta) plants were transformed with genetic constructions constitutively expressing the chicken lysozyme, the tobacco AP24 osmotine or the Phyllomedusa dermaseptine coding sequences, respectively. Transgenic potato lines transformed with either the lysozyme plus AP24, the dermaseptine or the three antimicrobial genes were assayed under controlled conditions for resistance to the phytopathogenic bacteria Erwinia carotovora spp. atroseptica and to the fungal pathogens Fusarium spp. Transgenic plants and tubers were inoculated with Erwinia and Fusarium fresh cultures.  Disease development was measured using arbitrary semi-quantitative scales. Several transgenic lines were analyzed by molecular assays (Real Time PCR, Western Blot, Southern Blot). Transgenic plants expressing combinations of two or three antimicrobial compounds exhibited increased resistance to both pathogens as compared to those expressing only one of them. Higher degrees of resistance were roughly correlated with higher expression of foreign genes. This biotechnological approach offers a promising tool in order to control important plant diseases that cause economical impact on agronomic-based economies.