Gene conferring resistance to cercospora beticola in beets

Abstract

A more efficient breeding against Cercospora leaf spot disease, or the development of new resistant lines, is enabled via the provision of the Cercospora resistance-mediating gene according to the invention; in particular, a dominant resistance effect in the target plant is evoked by the property of the identified gene alone. The Cercospora resistance-mediating gene, and embodiments of the present invention that are described in the preceding, offer additional applications, e.g., the use of the resistant gene allele in cis-genetic or trans-genetic approaches, with the goal of developing new resistant cultivars.

1 - 13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . A plant of the subspecies  Beta vulgaris  subsp. vulgaris comprising a nucleic acid molecule encoding a polypeptide that is able to confer resistance to  Cercospora beticola  in a plant in which the polypeptide is expressed, characterized in that the nucleic acid molecule comprises a nucleotide sequence which is selected from the group consisting of:
 (a) a nucleotide sequence that comprises the DNA sequence according to SEQ ID NO: 2;   (b) a nucleotide sequence that comprises the DNA sequence according to SEQ ID NO: 1 or SEQ ID NO: 53; and   (c) a nucleotide sequence that is at least 95% identical to the DNA sequence according to SEQ ID NO: 1 or SEQ ID NO: 2.   
     
     
         15 . The plant according to  claim 14 , wherein the plant is a hybrid plant. 
     
     
         16 . The plant according to  claim 14 , wherein the plant is a double haploid plant. 
     
     
         17 . The plant according to  claim 14 , wherein the resistance is dominant. 
     
     
         18 . The plant according to  claim 14 , wherein the plant comprises the nucleic acid molecule homozygous. 
     
     
         19 . The plant according to  claim 14 , wherein the plant comprises the nucleic acid molecule as an introgression. 
     
     
         20 . The plant according to  claim 14 , wherein the plant is a variety. 
     
     
         21 . A storage organ of the plant of the subspecies  Beta vulgaris  subsp. vulgaris according to  claim 14 . 
     
     
         22 . A seed of the plant according to  claim 14 , wherein the seed comprises the nucleic acid molecule. 
     
     
         23 . A seed according to  claim 22 , wherein the seed has been primed. 
     
     
         24 . The plant according to  claim 15 , wherein the plant has tolerance to at least one herbicide. 
     
     
         25 . The plant according to  claim 24 , wherein the at least one herbicide is selected from the group consisting of: glyphosate, ALS-inhibitor herbicide and glufosinate. 
     
     
         26 . The plant according to  claim 25 , wherein the tolerance to glyphosate is obtainable from deposition NCIMB 41158 or NCIMB 41159 and/or wherein the tolerance to an ALS-inhibitor herbicide is obtainable from deposition NCIMWB 41705. 
     
     
         27 . The plant according to  claim 25 , wherein the tolerance to glyphosate is conferred by a DNA fragment selected from the list consisting of:
 a) a DNA fragment of the genomic DNA of the plant or portions thereof which may be amplified via polymerase chain reaction with a first primer that has the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 81, and a second primer that has the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 82, wherein the DNA fragment is at least 95% identical to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 83, and/or   b) a DNA fragment of the genomic DNA of the plant or portions thereof which may be amplified via polymerase chain reaction with a first primer that has the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 84, and a second primer that has the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 85, wherein the DNA fragment is at least 95% identical to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 86, and/or   c) a DNA fragment of the genomic DNA of the plant or portions thereof which may be amplified via polymerase chain reaction with a first primer that has the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 87, and a second primer that has the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 88, wherein the DNA fragment is at least 95% identical to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 89.   
     
     
         28 . The plant according to  claim 25 , wherein the tolerance to an ALS-inhibitor herbicide is conferred by an acetolactate synthase gene encoding an acetolactate synthase protein which, as a result of a mutation, has at position 569 a different amino acid than tryptophan. 
     
     
         29 . The plant according to  claim 25 , wherein the mutated acetolactate synthase gene comprises the sequence according to SEQ ID No. 91. 
     
     
         30 . A method for identifying a  Cercospora beticola -resistant plant of the subspecies  Beta vulgaris  subsp. vulgaris according to  claim 14 , the method comprising:
 (i) detection of the presence and/or expression of the nucleic acid molecule in the plant or a portion of the plant; and/or   (ii) detection of at least one marker locus in the nucleotide sequence of the nucleic acid molecule or in a cosegregating region thereof, and   (iii) selection of the  Cercospora beticola -resistant plant,   wherein step (i) and/or step (ii) use sequence-specific amplification and/or detection of amplified variable sequences of the plant genome.   
     
     
         31 . The method according to  claim 30 , wherein the detection in step (i) or (ii) involves oligonucleotides linked to a fluorescent dye in order to generate a fluorescence signal. 
     
     
         32 . The method according to  claim 30 , wherein the fluorescent dye is selected from the group consisting of: FAM, AlexaFluor, ATTO, Dabcyl, HEX, Rox, TET, Texas Red, and Yakima Yellow. 
     
     
         33 . A method for farming of plants of the subspecies  Beta vulgaris  subsp. vulgaris, the mthod comprising:
 (i) the planting of a seed according to  claim 22 , and   (ii) cultivation of the plants from (i) or descendants thereof,   wherein the method counteracts an infestation of the cultivated plants with  Cercospora.      
     
     
         34 . A method for producing  Cercospora  resistant plants of the subspecies  Beta vulgaris  subsp. vulgaris according to  claim 14 , the method comprising:
 (i) introducing the nucleic acid molecule into the plant;   (ii) expressing the polypeptide that is able to confer resistance to  Cercospora beticola ; and   (iii) cultivating the plant of step (i).   
     
     
         35 . A method of producing an agronomical sugar beet plant of the genus  Beta  that displays improved resistance to  Cercospora beticola , the method comprising introgressing into said plant a chromosomal interval that confers resistance to  Cercospora beticola , wherein the chromosomal interval maps to a position between a sequence represented by a marker selected from the group consisting of: s4p4293s01 and s4p4295s01 and a sequence represented by a marker selected from the group consisting of: s4p4301s01 and sxh0678s01,
 wherein the chromosomal interval comprises a nucleotide sequence encoding a polypeptide that is able to confer resistance to  Cercospora beticola  in a plant in which the polypeptide is expressed wherein the nucleotide sequence is selected from the group consisting of:   (a) a nucleotide sequence that comprises the DNA sequence according to SEQ ID NO: 2;   (b) a nucleotide sequence that comprises the DNA sequence according to SEQ ID NO: 1 or SEQ ID NO: 53; and   (c) a nucleotide sequence that is at least 95% identical to the DNA sequence according to SEQ ID NO: 1 or SEQ ID NO: 2.