Novartis Finance Corporation

Ciba-Geigy Corporation

Agency of Industrial Science and Technology

Ministry of International Trade & Industry

Hideaki Shinshi

John A Ryals

Christoph Sperisen

Herman C Wenzler

Jan Hofsteenge

Frederick Meins, Jr

Gabor Lazar

Ingo Potrykus

Thomas Hohn

Jerzy Paszkowski

Hidekatsu Maeda

Kazunari Taira

Kensuke Furukawa

Isabelle Rauseo

Masanao Oda

The present invention provides chemically regulatable DNA sequences capable of regulating transcription of an associated DNA sequence in plants or plant tissues, chimeric constructions containing such sequences, vectors containing such sequences and chimeric constructions, and transgenic plants and plant tissues containing these chimeric constructions. In one aspect, the chemically regulatable DNA sequences of the invention are derived from the 5&prime; region of genes encoding pathogenisis-related (PR) proteins. The present invention also provides anti-pathogenic sequences derived from novel cDNAs coding for PR proteins which can be genetically engineered and transformed into plants to confer enhanced resistance to disease. Also provided is a method for the exogenous regulation of gene expression in plants, which comprises obtaining a plant incapable of regulating at least one gene or gene family, or at least one heterologous gene, due to the deactivation of at least one endogenous signal transduction cascade which regulates the gene in the plant, and applying a chemical regulator to the plant at a time when expression of the gene is desired. A novel signal peptide sequence and corresponding DNA coding sequence is also provided. Further provided are assays for the identification and isolation of additional chemically regulatable DNA sequences and cDNAs encoding PR proteins and assays for identifying chemicals capable of exogenously regulating the chemically regulatable DNA sequences of the invention.

DNA sequences encoding polypeptides having beta-1,3-glucanase activity

DNA sequences encoding polypeptides having &bgr;-1,3-glucanase activity

A DNA fragment is disclosed which has connected to the downstream side of a first DNA sequence containing a region coding for the first ribozyme RNA a second DNA sequence containing a region coding for second ribozyme RNA capable of cleaving by self-processing the 3'-terminus site of the first ribozyme RNA subjected to transcription. A ribozyme having the 3'-terminus site thereof self-processed is obtained by effecting transcription of a RNA using as a template a recombinant vector obtained by recombination by the use of the DNA fragment.

Hammerhead ribozymes with enhanced stability provided by an additional 3' h

A process for the maintenance and proliferation of defective, non-infectious viruses or virus genomes, comprising mutations, i.e. deletions, substitutions, insertions and new rearrangements of the viral genes or combinations of the virus DNA with heterologous genetic material in proliferating plant material and for the regeneration of whole plants containing stably integrated into their genome said defective, non-infectious virus DNA.

Process for the maintenance and proliferation of defective

Growing community of inventors

Tsuchiura, Japan

Hideaki Shinshi