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Constitutive Expression of Interferon-Induced Human MxA Protein in Transgenic Tobacco Plants Does not Confer Resistance to a Variety of RNA Viruses

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Abstract

MxA is a key component in the interferon-induced antiviral defense in humans. After viral infections, MxA is rapidly induced and accumulates in the cytoplasm. The multiplication of many RNA viruses,including all bunyaviruses tested so far, is inhibited by MxA. These findings prompted us to express MxA in plants in an attempt to create resistance to tospoviruses. Here, we report the generation of transgenic tobacco plants that constitutively express MxA under the control of the 35 S cauliflower mosaic virus promotor. Northern and western blot analysis confirmed the expression of MxA in several transgenic plant lines. MxA expression had no obvious detrimental effects on plant growth and fertility. However, challenge experiments with tomato spotted wilt virus, tomato chlorotic spot virus, and groundnut ringspot virus revealed no increased resistance of MxA-transgenic tobacco plants to tospovirus infections. Neither was the multiplicationof tobacco mosaic virus, cucumber mosaic virus and potato virus Y inhibited in MxA-transgenic plants. The results indicate that the expression of human MxA alone does not enhance virus resistance in planta.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Abteilung Virologie, Institut für Medizinische Mikrobiologie und Hygiene, Universität Freiburg, Hermann-Herder Str. 11, D-79104, Freiburg, Germany

    Michael Frese, Annette Ponten & Otto Haller

  2. Laboratory for Virology, Binnenhaven 11, 6709, PD Wageningen, The Netherlandsf

    Marcel Prins & Rob W. Goldbach

  3. Institut für Biologie III, Universität Freiburg, Schänzlestr. 1, D-79104, Freiburg, Germany

    Patric Zeltz

Authors
  1. Michael Frese
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  2. Marcel Prins
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  3. Annette Ponten
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  4. Rob W. Goldbach
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  5. Otto Haller
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  6. Patric Zeltz
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Frese, M., Prins, M., Ponten, A. et al. Constitutive Expression of Interferon-Induced Human MxA Protein in Transgenic Tobacco Plants Does not Confer Resistance to a Variety of RNA Viruses. Transgenic Res 9, 429–438 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1026526314875

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