Enza Zaden Beheer B.v.

Plant Research International B.v.

Monsanto Invest N.v.

De Ruiter Seeds R&d B.v.

Maarten Anthonie Jongsma

Hendrik Jan Bosch

Asaph Aharoni

Hendrik Jan Bouwmeester

Henricus Adrianus Verhoeven

Willem Johannes Stiekema

Borut Strukelj

Vito Turk

Brigita Lenarcic

Kristina Gruden

The invention relates to the field of genetic engineering of flavor, fragrance and biocontrol agent development. More specifically it relates to a process for production of natural flavors, fragrances or bio-control agents by the control of one or more genes implicated in that process. The invention provides an isolated or recombinant nucleic acid or functional fragment thereof encoding a proteinaceous molecule essentially capable of flavor, fragrance and/or bio-control agent synthesis when provided with a suitable substrate under appropriate reaction conditions. The invention further provides a nucleic acid or functional fragment thereof encoding a proteinaceous molecule essentially capable of synthesizing at least a monoterpene alcohol linalool when contacted with geranyl diphosphate (GPP) and/or at least a sesquiterpene alcohol nerolidol when contacted with farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) under appropriate reaction conditions.

Isoprenoid synthases

The invention relates to the field of genetic engineering of flavor, fragrance and bio-control agent development. More specifically it relates to a process for production of natural flavors, fragrances or bio-control agents by the control of one or more genes implicated in that process. The invention provides an isolated or recombinant nucleic acid or functional fragment thereof encoding a proteinaceous molecule essentially capable of flavor, fragrance and/or bio-control agent synthesis when provided with a suitable substrate under appropriate reaction conditions. The invention further provides a nucleic acid or functional fragment thereof encoding a proteinaceous molecule essentially capable of synthesizing at least a monoterpene alcohol linalool when contacted with geranyl diphosphate (GPP) and/or at least a sesquiterpene alcohol nerolidol when contacted with farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) under appropriate reaction conditions.

A method of protecting a plant or part of a plant from insect or nematode infestation is disclosed herein. The method includes the steps of: inserting into the genome of cells or tissue from a plant a sequence coding for equistatin operably linked to a promoter sequence active in the plant to cause expression of the protein at levels which provide an insect or nematode controlling amount of the protein; and regenerating resistant whole plants from the cells or tissue. Also disclosed is a transgenic plant or its sexual progeny which is resistant to attack by one or more insects or nematodes having digestive cysteine proteases. Also disclosed is an expression vehicle that includes a promotor effective to promote expression of a downstream coding sequence in plant cells, the expression vehicle being effective to express in plant cells insect controlling amounts of equistatin.

Method for plant protection against insects or nematodes by transformation with a nucleic acid encoding equistatin

Growing community of inventors

Wageningen, Netherlands

Maarten Anthonie Jongsma