Identification and Characterization of Apple Anthracnose Resistance Genes

Abstract

Apple is the most widely planted fruit tree in China. Apple anthracnose which caused by the fungus Colletotrichum gloeosporioides is one of the major pathogens causing apple fruit rot and yield loss. In this study, we identified and cloned the Pectinesterase Inhibitor 6-like gene from populations of ‘Fuhan’ and ‘Micui’apples. The Pectinesterase Inhibitor 6-like protein fused to a green fluorescent protein was localized in the cell membrane. The fluorescence quantitative results showed that the expression of Pectinesterase Inhibitor 6-like gene was the highest in sepals and the lowest in styles. The resistant strain was obtained by Agrobacterium-mediated stabilized genetic transformation, and the DNA level identification further proved that the resistant strain was a positive strain successfully transformed.