Combinations including cry34ab/35ab and cry 3aa proteins to prevent development of resistance in corn rootworms (diabrotica spp.)

Abstract

The subject invention relates in part to Cry34Ab/35Ab in combination with Cry3Aa. The subject invention relates in part to the surprising discovery that combinations of Cry34Ab/Cry35Ab and Cry3Aa are useful for preventing development of resistance (to either insecticidal protein system alone) by a corn rootworm (Diabrotica spp.) population. As one skilled in the art will recognize with the benefit of this disclosure, corn plants producing these insecticidal Cry proteins will be useful to mitigate concern that a corn rootworm population could develop that would be resistant to either of these insecticidal protein systems alone. Plants (and acreage planted with such plants) that produce these two insecticidal protein systems are included within the scope of the subject invention.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A transgenic plant that produces a full length native Cry34Ab1 protein, a truncated Cry35Ab1 protein, and a truncated Cry3Aa insecticidal protein. 
     
     
         2 . The transgenic plant of  claim 1 , wherein said truncated Cry35Ab1 protein is at least 95% identical with a sequence consisting of SEQ ID NO:5, said truncated Cry3Aa insecticidal protein is at least 95% identical with a sequence consisting of SEQ ID NO:2, wherein SEQ ID NO:2 is further modified with a dibasic protein residue to provide a methionine at an N-terminal position, and said full length native Cry34Ab1 protein is at least 95% identical with a sequence consisting of SEQ ID NO:3. 
     
     
         3 . The transgenic plant of  claim 1 , wherein the combination of the full length native Cry34Ab1 protein, the truncated Cry35Ab1 protein, wherein truncated SEQ ID NO:2 is modified with a dibasic protein residue to provide a methionine at a terminal 5′ position, and the truncated Cry3Aa insecticidal protein prevents development of resistance by a corn rootworm, and wherein the truncated Cry35Ab1 protein and the truncated Cry3Aa protein do not share a receptor binding site in corn rootworm gut. 
     
     
         4 . A field of plants comprising a plurality of plants according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         5 . The field of plants of  claim 4 , said field further comprising non-Bt refuge plants, wherein said refuge plants comprise less than 40% of all crop plants in said field. 
     
     
         6 . A method of managing development of resistance to a Cry protein by an insect, said method comprising planting seeds to produce a field of plants of  claim 5 . 
     
     
         7 . A field of  claim 5 , wherein said plants occupy more than 10 acres. 
     
     
         8 . The transgenic plant of  claim 1 , wherein said plant is a maize plant. 
     
     
         9 . The transgenic plant of  claim 1 , wherein said Cry35Ab1 protein comprises SEQ ID NO:5, said Cry3A insecticidal protein comprises SEQ ID NO:2, and said Cry34Ab1 protein comprises SEQ ID NO:3. 
     
     
         10 . A method of producing the plant of  claim 1 . 
     
     
         11 . A method of controlling a rootworm insect by contacting said insect with a plant of  claim 1 , wherein the truncated Cry35Ab1 protein and the truncated Cry3Aa protein do not share a receptor binding site in the gut of the corn rootworm. 
     
     
         12 . A method of controlling a rootworm insect by contacting said insect with a plant of  claim 2 , wherein the truncated Cry35Ab1 protein and the truncated Cry3Aa protein do not share a receptor binding site in the gut of the corn rootworm. 
     
     
         13 . A method of controlling a rootworm insect by contacting said insect with a plant of  claim 3 , wherein the truncated Cry35Ab1 protein and the truncated Cry3Aa protein do not share a receptor binding site in the gut of the corn rootworm. 
     
     
         14 . A method of controlling a rootworm insect by contacting said insect with a plant of  claim 9 , wherein the truncated Cry35Ab1 protein and the truncated Cry3Aa protein do not share a receptor binding site in the gut of the corn rootworm. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein said plant further produces a fourth insecticidal protein selected from the group consisting of a Cry3Ba protein and a Cry6Aa protein. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein said plant further produces a Cry3Ba protein and a Cry6Aa protein. 
     
     
         17 . The method of claim  24  wherein said Cry34 protein is a Cry34Ab protein and said Cry35 protein is a Cry35Ab protein.