Biotech Updates

Biotech Banana Confers Resistance to Black Leaf Streak

July 20, 2012

Biotech banana (Musa acuminata ‘Gros Michel') with one or two rice chinase genes was developed by Gabriella Kovács of KU Leuven, Belgium and team. Through leaf disk assay, they tested the biotech banana's resistance to black leaf streak disease caused by Mycosphaerella fijiensis. PCR screening confirmed the presence of the hpt, a selectable marker gene, which was detected in 90 percent of the lines, while more than 75% of the lines had linked rice chitinase gene.

There was a significant delay in disease development in 9 lines with extracellularly targeted chitinase out of 17 GM lines tested. The leaf areas affected was also found to be lessened by 73-94%, compared with the non-GM control line. Further analysis confirmed the relationship between symptom development and rice chitinase expression.

Read the research article at Transgenic Research: http://www.springerlink.com/content/l733677436l7g066/.