title: Bt toxin resistance from loss of a putative carbohydrate-modifying enzyme.
abstract: The development of resistance is the main threat to the long-term use of toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) in transgenic plants. Here we report the cloning of a Bt toxin resistance gene, Caenorhabditis elegans bre-5, which encodes a putative beta-1,3-galactosyltransferase. Lack of bre-5 in the intestine led to resistance to the Bt toxin Cry5B. Wild-type but not bre-5 mutant animals were found to uptake toxin into their gut cells, consistent with bre-5 mutants lacking toxin-binding sites on their apical gut. bre-5 mutants displayed resistance to Cry14A, a Bt toxin lethal to both nematodes and insects; this indicates that resistance by loss of carbohydrate modification is relevant to multiple Bt toxins.
authors.affiliation: Section of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Griffitts
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Whitacre
authors.forename: D E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Stevens
authors.forename: R V
authors.initials: RV
authors.lastname: Aroian
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D001692:Biological Transport; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004064:Digestive System / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism; D012734:Disorders of Sex Development; D004351:Drug Resistance / Q000235:genetics; D004705:Endocytosis; D004731:Endotoxins / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005700:Galactosyltransferases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D017238:Genes, Helminth; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; D019476:Insect Proteins; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009030:Mosaicism; D009154:Mutation; D010572:Pest Control, Biological; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000378:metabolism; D014170:Transformation, Genetic
chemical_list: D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; C095416:Cry toxin receptors; D004731:Endotoxins; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; D019476:Insect Proteins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; C030956:insecticidal crystal protein, Bacillus Thuringiensis; C433229:BRE-5 protein, C elegans; D005700:Galactosyltransferases