High-level expression of a viscotoxin in Arabidopsis thaliana gives enhanced resistance against Plasmodiophora brassicae.

Viscotoxins are a group of toxic thionins found in several mistletoe species. The constitutive CaMV-omega promoter was used to drive the expression of the viscotoxin A3 cDNA from Viscum album in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana C24. Lines with high viscotoxin A3 levels in all parts of the plant were selected and tested for resistance against the clubroot pathogen Plasmodiophora brassicae. The transgenic lines were more resistant to infection by this pathogen than the parental line.