The introduction of anti-apoptotic genes into plants leads to resistance to environmental stress and broad-spectrum disease resistance. The anti-apoptotic gene (p35) from a baculovirus was introduced into the genome of passion fruit plants by biobalistics. Eleven regenerated plants showed the presence of the p35 gene by PCR and/or dot blot hybridization. Transcriptional analysis of regenerated plants showed the presence of specific p35 transcripts in 9 of them. Regenerated plants containing the p35 gene were inoculated with the cowpea aphid-borne mosaic virus (CABMV), the bacterium Xanthomonas axonopodis pv passiflorae, and the herbicide, glufosinate, (Syngenta). None of the plants showed resistance to CABMV. Regenerated plants (p35+) showed less than half of local lesions showed by non-transgenic plants when inoculated with X. axonopodis and some p35+ plants showed increased tolerance to the glufosinate herbicide when compared to non-transgenic plants.

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