Transgenic Nicotiana benthamiana plants containing the P1 gene of plum pox virus are resistant to virus challenge

We report here the production of transgenic plants containing the P1 gene of the plum pox potyvirus genome. Two P1 constructs were engineered into Nicotiana benthamiana host plants via Agrobacterium tumefaciens. When challenged with PPV, transgenic plant lines were either immune to or recovered from infection. Biochemical studies conducted on these plant lines showed that the resistance phenotypes were correlated with the level of transgene transcript. Plant transformation with the P1 gene is a potentially useful alternative approach to create resistant plants.