title: Transgenic plants expressing the AaIT/GNA fusion protein show increased resistance and toxicity to both chewing and sucking pests.
abstract: The adoption of pest-resistant transgenic plants to reduce yield losses and decrease pesticide use has been successful. To achieve the goal of controlling both chewing and sucking pests in a given transgenic plant, we generated transgenic tobacco, Arabidopsis, and rice plants expressing the fusion protein, AaIT/GNA, in which an insecticidal scorpion venom neurotoxin (Androctonus australis toxin, AaIT) is fused to snowdrop lectin (Galanthus nivalis agglutinin, GNA). Compared with transgenic tobacco and Arabidopsis plants expressing AaIT or GNA, transgenic plants expressing AaIT/GNA exhibited increased resistance and toxicity to one chewing pest, the cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera. Transgenic tobacco and rice plants expressing AaIT/GNA showed increased resistance and toxicity to two sucking pests, the whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, and the rice brown planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens, respectively. Moreover, in the field, transgenic rice plants expressing AaIT/GNA exhibited a significant improvement in grain yield when infested with N. lugens. This study shows that expressing the AaIT/GNA fusion protein in transgenic plants can be a useful approach for controlling pests, particularly sucking pests which are not susceptible to the toxin in Bt crops.
authors: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors: Shu-Min
authors: SM
authors: Liu
authors: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
authors: Jie
authors: J
authors: Li
authors: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors: Jin-Qi
authors: JQ
authors: Zhu
authors: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
authors: Xiao-Wei
authors: XW
authors: Wang
authors: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors: Cheng-Shu
authors: CS
authors: Wang
authors: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
authors: Shu-Sheng
authors: SS
authors: Liu
authors: State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology and Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Agricultural Entomology, Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
authors: Xue-Xin
authors: XX
authors: Chen
authors: Key Laboratory of Insect Developmental and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors: Sheng
authors: S
authors: Li
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000898:Antibiosis; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D027801:Galanthus / Q000737:chemistry; D006430:Hemiptera / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology; D060434:Herbivory / Q000187:drug effects*; D007313:Insecta / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D007814:Larva / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology; D037241:Mannose-Binding Lectins / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D009036:Moths / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology; D009758:Nymph / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology; D012275:Oryza / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D037121:Plant Lectins / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D012604:Scorpion Venoms / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012605:Scorpions / Q000737:chemistry; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D037241:Mannose-Binding Lectins; D037121:Plant Lectins; D012604:Scorpion Venoms; C063117:snowdrop lectin
keywords: AaIT; AaIT/GNA; GNA; chewing pest; fusion protein; pest control; resistance; sucking pest; toxicity; transgenic plant