Novel Genes/Promoters for Tolerance to Abiotic and Biotic Stress and Their Role(s) in Aspergillus Infection and Aflatoxin Contamination

<p>(1) Identification and isolation of genes/promoters for Aspergillus (A.) flavus resistance in corn/cotton; (2) Express the candidate genes isolated in transgenic crops (tobacco, cotton, corn) by over/under expression; and (3) Evaluate the genes for tolerance to abiotic and biotic stress, for example, in response to A. flavus infection. Transgenic plants developed with these genes will be tested for their efficacy against A. flavus and other microbial pathogens. Genes identified in this study will lead to future development of sequence based functional marker (such as single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), EST-derived Simple Sequence Repeats (ESSR)) for use in marker-assisted breeding.</p>