Als inhibitor herbicide tolerant beta vulgaris mutants

Abstract

The present invention relates to an ALS inhibitor herbicide tolerant Beta vulgaris plant and parts thereof comprising a mutation of an endogenous acetolactate synthase (ALS) gene, wherein the ALS gene encodes an ALS polypeptide containing an amino acid different from tryptophan at a position 569 of the ALS polypeptide.

1 . An ALS inhibitor herbicide tolerant  Beta vulgaris  plant and parts thereof comprising a mutation of an endogenous acetolactate synthase (ALS) gene, wherein the ALS gene encodes an ALS polypeptide containing an amino acid different from tryptophan at a position 569 of the ALS polypeptide. 
     
     
         2 . The  Beta vulgaris  plant and parts thereof according to  claim 1 , in which the ALS polypeptide has at position 569 the amino acid alanine, glycine, isoleucine, leucine, methionine, phenylalanine, proline, valine, or arginine instead of the naturally encoded amino acid tryptophan. 
     
     
         3 . The  Beta vulgaris  plant and parts thereof according to  claim 1 , wherein the ALS gene encodes an ALS polypeptide containing an amino acid different from tryptophan at a position 569 of the ALS polypeptide sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 2. 
     
     
         4 . The  Beta vulgaris  plant and parts thereof according to  claim 1 , in which the amino acid is leucine and in which the endogenous ALS gene is identical to the nucleotide sequence defined by SEQ ID NO: 3. 
     
     
         5 . The  Beta vulgaris  plant and parts thereof according to  claim 1 , which are tolerant to one or more ALS-inhibitor herbicides belonging to the group consisting of sulfonylurea herbicides, sulfonylaminocarbonyltriazolinone herbicides, imidazolinone herbicides, triazolopyrimidine herbicides, and pyrimidinyl(thio)benzoate herbicides. 
     
     
         6 . The  Beta vulgaris  plant and parts thereof according to  claim 1 , which are homozygous for the mutation of the endogenous acetolactate synthase (ALS) gene. 
     
     
         7 . The parts of the  Beta vulgaris  plant according to  claim 1 , wherein the parts are organs, tissues, and cells of the plant, and preferably seeds. 
     
     
         8 . Method for the manufacture of the  Beta vulgaris  plant and the parts thereof of  claim 1 , comprising the following steps:
 (a) exposing calli from  B. vulgaris , to about 10 −7  M-10 −9  M of an ALS inhibitor herbicide, preferably foramsulfuron;   (b) selecting cell colonies which can grow in the presence of up to 3×10 −6  M of an ALS inhibitor herbicide, preferably foramsulfuron;   (c) regenerating shoots in presence of an ALS inhibitor herbicide, preferably foramsulfuron;   (d) selecting regenerated plantlets with an ALS inhibitor herbicide, preferably foramsulfuron, iodosulfuron-methyl-sodium and/or a mixture of both, wherein the dose of foramsulfuron is preferably equivalent to 7-70 g a.i./ha and the dose of iodosulfuron-methyl-sodium is preferably equivalent to 1-10 g a.i./ha.