conference schedule and program with abstracts - Horticulture ...
conference schedule and program with abstracts - Horticulture ...
conference schedule and program with abstracts - Horticulture ...
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P-111<br />
Cloning <strong>and</strong> functional characterisation of a putative powdery mildew susceptibility gene<br />
in grapevine<br />
A.S. Salami 1 , A. Ebadi 1 , M.R. Naghavi 1 , I. Dry 2 *<br />
1 Faculty of Agriculture <strong>and</strong> Natural Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran; 2 CSIRO Plant<br />
Industry, Waite Campus, Urrbrae, South Australia, Australia<br />
*Corresponding author: ian.dry@csiro.au<br />
Grapevine is highly susceptible to a range of different fungal pathogens including powdery<br />
mildew (Erysiphe necator), which can cause severe reductions in yield <strong>and</strong> quality. As part of<br />
multifaceted approach to improve the genetic resistance of grapevine to powdery mildew, we are<br />
investigating the grapevine pectate lyase-like (PLL) gene family because previous research in<br />
Arabidopsis has demonstrated that a specific member of the AtPLL gene family (PMR6) was<br />
required for powdery mildew susceptibility. Sixteen VvPLLs were predicted to be present in the<br />
grapevine genome. Based on sequence homology, we identified three genes, designated VvPLL1,<br />
VvPLL2 <strong>and</strong> VvPLL3, as potential orthologs of PMR6, <strong>and</strong> the coding regions were amplified<br />
from Vitis vinifera ‘Cabernet sauvignon’. All three VvPLL c<strong>and</strong>idates were found to encode<br />
proteins <strong>with</strong> a C-terminal GPI-anchor, which is a characteristic of PMR6 <strong>and</strong> VvPLL-GFP<br />
fusion constructs confirmed the VvPLL proteins were targeted to the plasma membrane.<br />
Quantitative RT-PCR analysis indicated constitutive expression of VvPLL1, VvPLL2 <strong>and</strong><br />
VvPLL3 in all tissues examined including leaves, roots, flowers <strong>and</strong> berries. In contrast, other<br />
members of the VvPLL gene family such as VvPLL9 <strong>and</strong> VvPLL10 were tissue-specific (floral).<br />
In agreement <strong>with</strong> observations for PMR6, VvPLL1, VvPLL2 <strong>and</strong> VvPLL3 were not significantly<br />
up-regulated by powdery mildew infection. Functional complementation experiments are<br />
currently underway in which the three VvPLL genes have been transformed into the Atpmr6<br />
mutant under the control of either the CaMV 35S or Arabidopsis PMR6 promoter. Our ultimate<br />
aim is to silence these VvPLL genes in grapevine to determine if we can modify susceptibility to<br />
powdery mildew.<br />
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