Micropropagation Cultures for Genetic Transformation of Grapevine

Abstract

A major drawback to the use of embryogenic cultures for transformation of grapevine is that their ability to undergo genetic transformation is cultivar-dependent. Also, depending on cultivar, embryogenic cultures are difficult to impossible to maintain over time, reducing their utility for use in genetic transformation. An alternative to the use of embryogenic cultures for transformation of grapevine is the use of micropropagation cultures, which are easier to initiate from a wide range of grapevine cultivars and can be maintained over time without loss of function. Vitis vinifera `Thompson Seedless' was used as a model for genetic transformation using micropropagation cultures. In vitro cultures were initiated from apical meristems of actively growing vines and maintained in C2D medium containing 4 μM of 6-benzylaminopurine (C2D4B). Shoot tips and nodes were collected from proliferating in vitro cultures for transformation studies. A variety of wounding techniques, including nicking, sonication, and fragmenting of meristematic tissues was employed in order to enable Agrobacterium infection. We used a construct containing a bidirectional 35S promoter complex with a marker gene composed of a bifunctional fusion between an enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) gene and a neomycin phosphotransferase (NPTII) gene in one direction and a hybrid lytic peptide gene in the other. Transgenic shoots growing in C2D4B medium containing 200 mg·L-1 each of carbenicillin and cefotaxime and 20 mg·L-1 of kanamycin were selected based on GFP fluorescence. Transgenic shoots were rooted and transferred to a greenhouse. To date, 18 transgenic lines have been generated. Details on the transformation procedure will be discussed.