Technology patented to create Pierces disease-resistant ...( GAINESVILLE Fla. --- Grape growers b...)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. --- Grape growers battling a disease that causes millions of dollars in losses each year -- and also prevents the cultivation of popular grape varieties in the Southeast -- may soon be able to turn to genetically modified plants that resist the disease.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today (5/15) issued a patent for the use of a group of genes in grapevines expected to make the plants resistant to Pierces disease, for which there currently is no effective control. The patent was issued jointly to the University of Florida and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, who collaborated several years ago to develop the technology to transfer one of the genes into the plants. The research has since continued at UFs Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences as part of multimillion-dollar project.

We believe these genes could protect grape plants against a number of diseases, but our target is Pierces disease, said Dennis Gray, a UF professor of developmental biology at the UF Mid-Florida Research and Education Center in Apopka. We had promising results early on in the project, and were optimistic tests will confirm heightened resistance in the plants.

With grapes ranked among the top 15 most valuable crops in the nation, Pierces disease-resistant grape plants could have major benefits for the wine- and table-grape industries, Gray said. The disease has caused millions of dollars in damage in California, according to the California Department of Agriculture.

The genetically modified plants could reduce or eliminate the use of insecticides in California aimed at killing insects that spread disease. Such insecticides provide, at best, temporary relief, according to UF research dating back to the 1920s, Gray said. Another advantage of the genetically modified plants is that they could open the door to growing more valuable wine- and table-grape varieties in the Southeast and Florida, he added.

Pierces disease is caused b
'"/>

Contact: Dennis Gray
djg@mail.ifas.ufl.edu
407-884-2034 x126
University of Florida
14-May-2001