Casein kinase stress-related polypeptides and methods of use in plants

Abstract

A transgenic plant transformed by a casein kinase Stress-Related Polypeptide (CKSRP) coding nucleic acid, wherein expression of the nucleic acid sequence in the plant results in increased tolerance to environmental stress as compared to a wild type variety of the plant. Also provided are agricultural products, including seeds, produced by the transgenic plants. Also provided are isolated CKSRPs, and isolated nucleic acid coding CKSRPs, and vectors and host cells containing the latter.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] The present application is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. application Ser. No. 09 / 828,313, which was filed on Apr. 6, 2001 claiming the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 196,001 filed Apr. 7, 2000, the entire contents of both applications are hereby incorporated by reference. The present application is also a continuation-in-part application of U.S. application No. 10 / 292,408, which was filed on Nov. 12, 2002, claiming the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 346,096 filed Nov. 9, 2001, the entire contents of both applications are hereby incorporated by reference.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] This invention relates generally to nucleic acid sequences encoding polypeptides that are associated with abiotic stress responses and abiotic stress tolerance in plants. In particular, this invention relates to nucleic acid sequences ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0020] The invention further provides a method of producing a transgenic plant with a CKSRP coding nucleic acid, wherein expression of the nucleic acid in the plant results in increased tolerance to environmental stress as compared to a wild type variety of the plant comprising: (a) transforming a plant cell with an expression vector comprising a CKSRP coding nucleic acid, and (b) generating from the plant cell a transgenic plant with an increased tolerance to environmental stress as compared to a wild type variety of the plant. In preferred embodiments, the CKSRP and CKSRP coding nucleic acid are as described below.

Problems solved by technology

Abiotic environmental stresses, such as drought stress, salinity stress, heat stress, and cold stress, are major limiting factors of plant growth and productivity.

Crop losses and crop yield losses of major crops such as soybean, rice, maize (corn), cotton, and wheat caused by these stresses represent a significant economic and political factor and contribute to food shortages in many underdeveloped countries.

However, if the severity and duration of the drought conditions are too great, the effects on development, growth, and yield of most crop plants are profound.

Continuous exposure to drought conditions causes major alterations in the plant metabolism, which ultimately lead to cell death and consequently yield losses.

However, traditional plant breeding strategies to develop new lines of plants that exhibit resistance (tolerance) to these types of stresses are relatively slow and require specific resistant lines for crossing with the desired line.

Limited germplasm resources for stress tolerance and incompatibility in crosses between distantly related plant species represent significant problems encountered in conventional breeding.

Additionally, the cellular processes leading to drought, cold, and salt tolerance in model drought- and / or salt-tolerant plants are complex in nature and involve multiple mechanisms of cellular adaptation and numerous metabolic pathways.

This multi-component nature of stress tolerance has not only made breeding for tolerance largely unsuccessful, but has also limited the ability to genetically engineer stress tolerant plants using biotechnological methods.

As discussed above, most plants have evolved strategies to protect themselves against conditions of desiccation; however, if the severity and duration of the drought conditions are too great, the effects on plant development, growth and yield of most crop plants are profound.

Furthermore, most of the crop plants are very susceptible to higher salt concentrations in the soil.

Additionally, under freezing temperatures, plant cells lose water as a result of ice formation that starts in the apoplast and withdraws water from the symplast.

Although some genes that are involved in stress responses and water use efficiency in plants have been characterized, the characterization and cloning of plant genes that confer stress tolerance and water use efficiency remains largely incomplete and fragmented.

Although it is generally assumed that stress-induced proteins have a role in tolerance, direct evidence is still lacking, and the functions of many stress-responsive genes are unknown.

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