Reporter constructs for compound screening

1. A method of screening for a hit compound that increases plant desiccation tolerance, performance or yield, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) contacting at least one test compound with a transgenic plant cell comprising: (i) a target drought-inducible promoter sequence that is operably linked to a polynucleotide sequence that encodes a DNA sequence-specific transactivator; and (ii) a reporter polynucleotide that is operably linked to a promoter sequence that can be recognized by the DNA sequence-specific transactivator;

wherein the target drought-inducible promoter sequence can be recognized by a transcriptional regulatory polypeptide that modulates a signaling pathway and said modulation results in increased tolerance to desiccation, increased plant performance or increased yield in a plant;

(b) identifying a test compound that alters the reporter gene activity relative to controls and selecting a hit compound so identified; and

(c) in a secondary screen, when said hit compound is applied to the plant said hit compound increases the tolerance to desiccation, plant performance, or yield of the plant.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the DNA sequence-specific transactivator is a translational fusion of a DNA binding domain (DBD) and a transcriptional activation domain (AD);

wherein the AD comprises SEQ ID NO: 20; and

wherein the DBD comprises SEQ ID NO: 16.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reporter polynucleotide encodes green fluorescent protein.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the target promoter sequence is an At3g46230 promoter or a functional part thereof having a promoter function.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transgenic cell further comprises a polynucleotide sequence that encodes an additional DNA sequence-specific transactivator,

wherein transcription of the polynucleotide sequence encoding the additional DNA-sequence-specific transactivator is under the control of a promoter sequence that is recognized by the first DNA-sequence-specific transactivator; and wherein the additional DNA-sequence-specific transactivator regulates transcription of the reporter gene through binding of its cognate sequence that is operably linked to the reporter polynucleotide.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of:

(c) contacting a plant with the hit compound and detecting the increased tolerance to desiccation, performance, or yield in the plant relative to controls.

7. A method of screening for a compound that increases tolerance to desiccation of a plant, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) contacting at least one test compound with a transgenic plant cell comprising: (i) a target drought-inducible promoter sequence that is operably linked to a polynucleotide sequence that encodes a DNA sequence-specific transactivator; and (ii) a reporter polynucleotide that is operably linked to a promoter sequence that can be recognized by the DNA sequence-specific transactivator;

wherein the target drought-inducible promoter sequence can be recognized by a transcriptional regulatory polypeptide that modulates a signaling pathway and said modulation results in increased tolerance to desiccation in the plant;

(b) identifying a test compound that produces a level of induction of the reporter polynucleotide greater than the level of induction in a control plant and selecting a hit compound so identified; and

(c) in a secondary screen, contacting the plant with the hit compound and detecting increased tolerance to desiccation in the plant relative to a control plant.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the level of induction of the reporter polynucleotide is at least 2.5 fold.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the DNA sequence-specific transactivator is a translational fusion of a DBD comprising a sequence encoded by SEQ ID NO: 1 and an AD comprising SEQ ID NO: 20.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein the reporter polynucleotide encodes green fluorescent protein.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the target promoter sequence is an At3g46230 promoter or a functional part thereof having a promoter function.

12. A method for increasing tolerance to desiccation, performance or yield of a plant, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) contacting at least one test compound with a transgenic plant cell comprising: (i) a target drought-inducible promoter sequence that is operably linked to a polynucleotide sequence that encodes a DNA sequence-specific transactivator; and (ii) a reporter polynucleotide that is operably linked to a promoter sequence that can be recognized by the DNA sequence-specific transactivator;

wherein the target drought-inducible promoter sequence can be recognized by a transcriptional regulatory polypeptide that modulates specific signaling pathways and said modulation results in increased plant performance or yield in the plant;

(b) identifying a test compound that produces a level of induction of the reporter polynucleotide greater than the level of induction in a control plant and selecting a hit compound so identified; and

(c) in a secondary screen, contacting the plant with the hit compound and detecting increased tolerance to desiccation, performance or yield in the plant relative to a control plant.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the level of induction of the reporter polynucleotide is at least 2.5 fold.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the DNA sequence-specific transactivator is a translational fusion of a DBD comprising a sequence encoded by SEQ ID NO: 1 and an AD comprising SEQ ID NO: 20.

15. The method of claim 12 , wherein the reporter polynucleotide encodes green fluorescent protein.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein the target promoter sequence is an At3g46230 promoter or a functional part thereof having a promoter function.