TRANSGENIC PLANTS OF GLADIOLUS CONTAINING THE COAT PROTEIN AND REPLICASE GENES OF CUCUMBER MOSAIC VIRUS

Authors: Kamo, Kathryn; Ueng, Peter; Aebig, Joan; Hsu, Hei Ti; Guaragna, Mary; Jordan, Ramon

Submitted to: Society for In Vitro Biology Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/4/2006
Publication Date: 7/28/2006
Citation: Kamo, K.K., Ueng, P.P., Aebig, J.A., Hsu, H., Guaragna, M.A., Jordan, R.L. 2006. Transgenic plants of gladiolus containing the coat protein and replicase genes of cucumber mosaic virus. [abstract]. Society for In Vitro Biology Proceedings. 42:44-A.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Viruses are a major problem for flower bulb crops because the viruses are maintained each year in the infected bulbs used for propagating the crop. The two economically important viruses that infect gladiolus are Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) and Bean yellow mosaic virus. There are no commercially important cultivars of gladiolus resistant to these viruses that could be used for breeding. Transgenic gladiolus plants were developed using biolistics that contained either the CMV coat protein serotype I, coat protein serotype II, replicase, coat protein serotypes I and II combined, or coat protein serotype II and replicase genes combined. Cucumber mosaic virus is transmitted by aphids making it difficult to challenge the transgenic plants so a method to challenge plants using the hand-held gene gun was developed. All gladiolus plant lines were initially challenged using 2 ug of a cucumber mosaic virus isolate from gladiolus using the hand-held gun. Under these conditions 100% of non-transgenic gladiolus plants became infected whereas several lines containing either the coat protein serotype II or replicase genes were resistant to infection. Six plants were initially challenged for each plant line, and a line was considered resistant to infection when 5-6 of the plants/line did not become infected.