Transgenic Approaches in Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.)

Abstract

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is one of the primary oilseed crops that has a rich source of protein. The geocarpic nature of crop growth hinders the overall yield performance of groundnut by several biotic and abiotic stress factors. Several attempts were undertaken to overcome these factors by developing superior varieties, however many of the conventional approaches were unsuccessful. An alternative to this is by biotechnological intervention like transformation of alien genes, either directly or indirectly that ultimately enhances the yield. Several genes were detected, cloned and transformed as major parts of transgenic programmes. Application of modern molecular biological techniques, in designing biotic and abiotic stress tolerant/resistant groundnut varieties that exhibited mechanisms of resistance, relied on the expression of specific genes associated to particular stress. The genetically transformed stress tolerant groundnut varieties could be utilized as donor parents in conventional breeding programmes. The present article emphasizes on the prospects of genetic transformation tools, implemented for the enhancement of groundnut varieties against key biotic and abiotic stress factors.