Pathogen-resistant grape plants

Abstract

The invention features a method of producing a grape somatic embryo having resistance to a plant pathogen, the method including the steps of (a) culturing a grape somatic embryo in a first liquid culture medium that includes a plant growth regulator and a phytotoxin from a plant pathogen; (b) exchanging the first liquid culture medium for a second liquid culture medium not including the phytotoxin; (c) recovering a living grape cell or grape cell cluster from the second liquid culture, the living cell or cell cluster being resistant to the pathogen; and (d) culturing the grape cell or grape cell cluster in a third culture medium to produce a grape somatic embryo.

1 . A method of identifying a protein that provides pathogen resistance to a grape plant, said method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) culturing a grape somatic embryo in a first liquid culture medium comprising a plant growth regulator and a phytotoxin from a plant pathogen;    (b) exchanging said first liquid culture medium for a second liquid culture medium not comprising said phytotoxin;    (c) recovering a grape cell or grape cell cluster from said second liquid culture;    (d) culturing said grape cell or grape cell cluster in a third culture medium to produce a grape somatic embryo having resistance to said plant pathogen;    (e) recovering said grape somatic embryo having resistance to said plant pathogen; and    (f) identifying a protein that is expressed in said grape somatic embryo and that is not expressed in a grape somatic embryo not cultured in a culture medium comprising said phytotoxin from said plant pathogen, wherein said identified protein is a protein that confers on a plant pathogen resistance.    
     
     
         2 . A method for identifying a protein that, when expressed in a grape plant, confers on said plant pathogen resistance, said method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) contacting an embryogenic cell, embryogenic culture, or somatic embryo, with a plant pathogen; and    (b) measuring the level of expression of a protein, wherein an increased level of expression of the protein by said embrogenic cell, embryogenic culture, or somatic embryo, relative to an embryogenic cell, embryogenic culture, or somatic embryo not contacted with said plant pathogen, identifies said protein as one that, when expressed in a plant, confers on said plant pathogen resistance.    
     
     
         3 . A method of identifying protein candidates for conferring pathogen resistance activity in a grape plant, said method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) culturing a grape somatic embryo in a first liquid culture medium comprising a plant growth regulator and a phytotoxin from a plant pathogen;    (b) exchanging said first liquid culture medium for a second liquid culture medium not comprising said phytotoxin;    (c) recovering a grape cell or grape cell cluster from said second liquid culture medium;    (d) culturing said recovered grape cell or grape cell cluster in a third culture medium;    (e) recovering a grape cell or grape cell cluster from said third culture medium; and    (f) identifying a protein that is expressed in said grape somatic embryo and that is not expressed, or less expressed, in a grape somatic embryo not cultured in a culture medium comprising said phytotoxin from said plant pathogen.    
     
     
         4 . A method of identifying protein candidates for conferring pathogen resistance activity in a grape plant, said method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) contacting an embryogenic cell, embryogenic culture or somatic embryo with a plant pathogen; and    (b) identifying a protein exhibiting an increased level of expression in said embryogenic cell, embryogenic culture or somatic embryo relative to an embryogenic cell, embryogenic culture, or somatic embryo not contacted with said plant pathogen.