The invention relates to a method of generating or increasing a pathogen resistance in plants by reducing the expression of at least one stomatin polypeptide or a functional equivalent thereof. The invention relates to novel nucleic acid sequences coding for a Hordeum vulgare stomatin (HvSTM1) polynucleotide and describes homologous sequences (STM1) thereof, and to their use in methods for obtaining a pathogen resistance in plants, and to nucleic acid constructs, expression cassettes and vectors which comprise these sequences and which are suitable for mediating a fungal resistance in plants. The invention furthermore relates to transgenic organisms, in particular plants, which are transformed with these expression cassettes or vectors, and to cultures, parts or transgenic propagation material derived therefrom.