KSEF RDE: Rapid Screening and Expression of Valuable Proteins in Soybean using a Virus-Based Vector

Plant virus-based vectors for expressing heterologous proteins in plants present promising biotechnological tools to supplement conventional breeding and transgenic technology. Considering the speed with which a virus infection becomes established throughout the plant and the high yield of viral-encoded proteins that accumulate in plants, the use of viral vectors provides an attractive and cost effective means for the overproduction of valuable proteins in plants and for rapid evaluation of new traits. Soybean is the top oilseed crop in the world and provides an extremely valuable, multi-billion dollar, source of high quality protein. There is critical need at present for tools that allow for rapid evaluation of new traits involving expression of beneficial proteins that confer disease/pest resistance and/or those that enhance the commercial value of soybean. We have recently developed bean pod mottle virus (BPMV)-based vectors that are suitable for efficient expression of heterologous proteins in soybean. The BPMV vector is the only available plant-virus-based vector that is appropriate for stable expression of foreign proteins in soybean. The availability of the BPMV expression vector will allow rapid evaluation of candidate proteins with antifungal, anti-nematode or other beneficial activities. The potential advantages that make BPMV an attractive vector system are that the virus multiplies to high levels in soybean and that it is stable and easily purified. Our proposal aims to utilize this virus-based vector to express heterologous proteins in this economically important crop. We plan to sub-clone the coding sequences of selected proteins and peptides into the BPMV vector and screen for acquired phenotypes including resistance to plant pathogenic fungi, nematodes and other pests. Initial emphasis will be on antifungal and anti-nematode proteins with potential value in protecting soybean from fungal and nematode attack. We anticipate that this proposal will yield valuable data in a relatively short period and help further our ability to enhance the productivity of the soybean plant..