Strategies for antiviral resistance in transgenic plants.
Genetic engineering offers a means of incorporating new virus resistance traits into existing desirable plant cultivars. The initial attempts to create transgenes conferring virus resistance were based on the pathogen-derived resistance concept. The expression of the viral coat protein gene in transgenic plants was shown to induce protective effects similar to classical cross protection, and was therefore distinguished as 'coat-protein-mediated' protection. Since then, a large variety of viral sequences encoding structural and non-structural proteins were shown to confer resistance. Subsequently, non-coding viral RNA was shown to be a potential trigger for virus resistance in transgenic plants, which led to the discovery of a novel innate resistance in plants, RNA silencing. Apart from the majority of pathogen-derived resistance strategies, alternative strategies involving virus-specific antibodies have been successfully applied. In a separate section, efforts to combat viroids in transgenic plants are highlighted. In a final summarizing section, the potential risks involved in the introduction of transgenic crops and the specifics of the approaches used will be discussed.
Prins
Marcel
M
Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University, Binnenhaven 11, 6709 PD, Wageningen, The Netherlands. marcel.prins@keygene.com
Laimer
Margit
M
Noris
Emanuela
E
Schubert
Jörg
J
Wassenegger
Michael
M
Tepfer
Mark
M
D036022:Capsid Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000821:virology*; D053830:Plant Viral Movement Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D010942:Plant Viruses / Q000472:pathogenicity; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000235:genetics* / Q000821:virology*; D034622:RNA Interference; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D012324:RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase / Q000235:genetics; D019076:Transgenes; D014772:Viroids / Q000472:pathogenicity
D036022:Capsid Proteins; D053830:Plant Viral Movement Proteins; D012367:RNA, Viral; D012324:RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase