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AssigneeUniversity of Georgia Research Foundation, Inc.
InventorsDebra Mohnen, Jason Sterling, Ron Doong, Venkata Siva Kolli, Michael Hahn
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The invention provides an isolated nucleic acid molecule encoding the polypeptide having galacturonosyltransferase (GaIAT) activity. The GALA T 1 disclosed represents the first pectin biosynthetic glycosyltransferase gene isolated from plants. The invention further provides 14 GALAT and 10 GALAT-like gene superfamily members. The identification of the GALAT gene superfamily offers new opportunities to modulate pectin synthesisin vivo and in vitro by modulating the GALATgene, for example, transgenic plants that produce modified pectins can be generated by altering the GALAT gene. Since modified pectins are predicted to affect plant growth, development, and plant defense responses, the transgenic plants are expected to have improved agricultural value. The modified pectins isolated from such transgenic plants are useful as gelling and stabilizing agents in the food, neutraceutical, and pharmaceutical industries. The expressed proteins, and variants thereof, of the GALAT superfamily are useful to produce in vitro modified pectins of commercial value.
An isolated nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide or a fragment thereof having galacturonosyltransferase (GalAT) activity.
An isolated polypeptide or a fragment thereof having galacturonosyltransferase GalAT activity wherein the polypeptide or the fragment has approximately 50% amino acid sequence similarity with the corresponding amino acid sequence as shown in SEQ ID NO:
A transgenic plant having modified pectin.
A transgenic plant having altered GalAT activity wherein the altered activity is due to a mutation in the GALAT gene.
A method of generating a plant with altered GalAT activity by mutating the GALAT gene.
A method of preparing a polymer comprising a galacturonic acid and a polymer with a GALAT protein under conditions suitable to form at least one covalent linkage between the galacturonic acid and the polymer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.