Expression of an insecticidal fern protein in cotton protects against whitefly.
Whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) damages field crops by sucking sap and transmitting viral diseases. None of the insecticidal proteins used in genetically modified (GM) crop plants to date are effective against whitefly. We report the identification of a protein (Tma12) from an edible fern, Tectaria macrodonta (Fee) C. Chr., that is insecticidal to whitefly (median lethal concentration = 1.49 μg/ml in in vitro feeding assays) and interferes with its life cycle at sublethal doses. Transgenic cotton lines that express Tma12 at ∼0.01% of total soluble leaf protein were resistant to whitefly infestation in contained field trials, with no detectable yield penalty. The transgenic cotton lines were also protected from whitefly-borne cotton leaf curl viral disease. Rats fed Tma12 showed no detectable histological or biochemical changes, and this, together with the predicted absence of allergenic domains in Tma12, indicates that Tma12 might be well suited for deployment in GM crops to control whitefly and the viruses it carries.
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Anoop Kumar
AK
Shukla
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Santosh Kumar
SK
Upadhyay
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Manisha
M
Mishra
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Sharad
S
Saurabh
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Rahul
R
Singh
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Harpal
H
Singh
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Nidhi
N
Thakur
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Preeti
P
Rai
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Paras
P
Pandey
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Aradhana L
AL
Hans
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Subhi
S
Srivastava
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Vikram
V
Rajapure
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Sunil Kumar
SK
Yadav
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Mithlesh Kumar
MK
Singh
National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute, Mohali, Punjab, India.
Jitendra
J
Kumar
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
K
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4937-8787
K
Chandrashekar
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Praveen C
PC
Verma
Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.|Plant Diversity, Systematics and Herbarium Division, CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Ajit Pratap
AP
Singh
Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.|Plant Diversity, Systematics and Herbarium Division, CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
K N
KN
Nair
Toxicology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Smrati
S
Bhadauria
Pharmacokinetics and Metabolism Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Muhammad
M
Wahajuddin
Toxicology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Sarika
S
Singh
Toxicology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Sharad
S
Sharma
Ladybird Beetle Research Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Lucknow, Lucknow, India.
Omkar
Department of Botany, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India.
Ram Sanmukh
RS
Upadhyay
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Shirish A
SA
Ranade
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.
Rakesh
R
Tuli
Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India.|Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi, India.
Pradhyumna Kumar
PK
Singh
D000818:Animals; D029624:Ferns / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D024861:Genetic Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D003368:Gossypium / Q000235:genetics* / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000821:virology; D006430:Hemiptera / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000821:virology*; D007306:Insecticides / Q000378:metabolism*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015202:Protein Engineering / Q000379:methods; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
D007306:Insecticides; D010940:Plant Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins