Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated genetic transformation of the phytopathogenic ascomycete Calonectria morganii

Conidia of the phytopathogenic fungus Calonectria morganii were transformed to hygromycin B resistance using the hph gene of Escherichia coli as the selective trait, governed by a heterologous fungal promoter and the Aspergillus nidulans trpC terminator. Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation yielded stable hygromycin B-resistant clones (average number (106 per 10(7)) [corrected] conidia). Putative transformants appeared to be mitotically and meiotically stable. The presence of the hph gene was checked by PCR. In four randomly chosen transformants, single-copy integrations of the marker gene at different chromosomal sites were proven by Southern analysis.