University of Leeds

Advanced Technologies (cambridge) Limited

Syngenta Participations Ag

Michael John McPherson

Howard John Atkinson

Darren Tomlinson

Peter Edward Urwin

Sarah Jane Gurr

Dianna Joy Bowles

Christopher John Robert Thomas

Anil Neelam

The present invention relates to scaffold proteins derived from plant cystatins and to nucleic acids encoding them. The scaffolds are highly stable and have the ability to display peptides. The scaffolds are particularly well suited for constructing libraries, e.g., in phage display or related systems. The invention also relates to various uses of the scaffolds, including in therapy, diagnosis, environmental and security monitoring, synthetic biology and research, and to cells and cell cultures expressing the scaffold proteins.

Scaffold proteins derived from plant cystatins

This invention seeks to provide means by which transgenic plants harbour within their genome a chimaeric gene which when expressed produces a protein having a cytotoxic effect. Cytotoxicity is achieved by way of a protein or part thereof capable of blocking cellular protein synthesis, such as a maize ribosome inactivating protein or part thereof. The chimaeric gene may comprise a promoter operably linked to a sequence encoding a protein capable of blocking cellular protein synthesis such that the promoter is inducible at and/or adjacent to a target site.

Plant cell death system

The invention is directed to a method for improving resistance or tolerance of a plant to a pathogen, wherein the method comprises integrating a DNA molecule encoding a fusion protein comprising at least two anti-pathogenic proteins or protein domains joined by at least one linker peptide, wherein the first anti-pathogenic protein or protein domain comprises Oc-I&Dgr;D86 or Oc-I and the second anti-pathogenic protein or protein domain comprises CpTI.

Method of improving nematode resistance in plants via transformation with a DNA encoding a proteinase inhibitor fusion protein

The invention relates to proteinase inhibitors and in particular cystatins which have been modified so as to enhance the effectiveness of synthetically manufactured counterparts. The modifications include either site-directed alterations in the structure of the protein and/or the production of hybrid molecules.

Modified proteinase inhibitors

A method of controlling nematodes, the method includes the steps of identification of a gene induced within a successfully infected plant by nematode infection of said plant and modifying the gene to confer nematode resistance to the plant.

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Thornhill, United Kingdom

Michael John McPherson