Kanamycin-resistant Calli Research Articles

Genetic transformation of commercial breeding lines of alfalfa (Medicago sativa)

Bio-engineering technologies are now routinely used for the genetic improvement of many agricultural crops. However, breeding lines of Medicago sativa are not easily amenable to genetic transformation and therefore cannot benefit from the molecular tools that have been developed for genetic manipulations. This paper describes a strategy that has been developed to transfer DNA into commercially important breeding lines of winter-hardy alfalfa via Agrobacterium infection. Three highly regenerative genotypes have been selected from ca 1000 genotypes within 11 breeding lines. They have been used as basic material for an extensive genetic transformation trial. Combinations of genotypes (11.9, 8.8, 1.5) expression vectors (pGA482, pGA643, pBibKan) and bacterial strains (C58, A281, LBA4404) were tested for their ability to produce stable transgenic material. Putative transgenic plantlets were further screened by nptII-specific PCR amplification, Southern hybridization and recallusing assays. One genotype (1.5) gave only one transformant out of 432 individual trials. With the two other genotypes, efficiency of transformation (kanamycin-resistant calluses obtained/explant tested) ranged from 0 to 0.92 depending on the strain/vector combination used. Statistical interactions underline the possibility of obtaining good genotype-strain-vector combinations for alfalfa transformation. Predicted transformation probability indicates that with strain LBA4404 containing the vector pGA482 and genotype 11.9, transformation efficiency is above 60% and 10% or more of the calluses retain embryogenic potential. PCR amplification and Southern hybridization of randomly chosen regenerated plantlets demonstrated that all embryos developing on 50 μg ml-1 kanamycin had a stable genomic insertion of nptII. Sexual crosses with untransformed genotypes showed that segregation of the transgenic trait followed Mendelian heredity.

Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of ginseng (Panax ginseng) and mitotic stability of the inserted ?-glucuronidase gene in regenerants from isolated protoplasts

Cotyledonary expiants of ginseng zygotic embryos were cocultured with Agrobacterium tumefadens strain LBA4404 harboring the binary vector pBI121 for 48 h and transferred onto MS medium supplemented with 1 mgl(-1) 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), 0.1 mgl(-1) kinetin, and 100 mgl(-1) kanamycin. After 8 weeks of culture, kanamycin-resistant calli formed on the cut surfaces of cotyledonary expiants and subsequently they gave rise to numerous somatic embryos. Eight weeks after transfer onto medium containing 1 mgl(-1) each of 6-benzyladenine (BA) and gibberellic acid, most of them developed into plantlets. Southern analysis confirmed that the β-glucuronidase (GUS) gene was incorporated into the genomic DNA of regenerants. Protoplasts were enzymatically isolated from transformed somatic embryo segments and cultured in liquid medium containing 60 gl(-1) myo-inositol, 1 mgl(-1) 2,4-D, 0.5 mgl(-1) BA, and 0.5 mgl(-1) kinetin. Plants were regenerated from protoplasts via somatic embryogenesis. The polymerase chain reaction method revealed that 92% of the regenerants retained the GUS gene. When treated with X-glucuronide, 78% of the regenerants showed a GUS-positive response. The overall results indicate that the transgene is stably transmitted during somatic ontogeny and stably expressed in most the regenerants, whereas it may be deleted or impaired in some portion of them.

Stable transformation of tomato cell cultures after bombardment with plasmid and YAC DNA

Stable transformants were obtained after microprojectile particle bombardment of tomato cell suspensions (Lycopersicon esculentum cv VFNT Cherry and L. pennellii). The suspensions were bombarded with tungsten particles coated with either plasmid (∼6.3 kb) or yeast artificial chromosome (YAC) (80 kb) DNA containing the ß-glucuronidase (GUS) and neomycin phosphotransferase II (nptII) genes. The YAC DNA contained an insert of approximately 50 kb of DNA from VFNT Cherry. L. pennellii suspensions were more amenable to transformation than VFNT Cherry; more kanamycin-resistant calli were recovered from L. pennelli after bombardment with plasmid DNA, and only L. pennellii cells produced transformants after bombardment with YAC DNA. DNA gel blot analysis confirmed the presence of the nptll and GUS genes. This analysis also confirmed the integration of YAC DNA into the genome of the kanamycin-resistant calli and suggested that the level of intactness of the integrated YAC DNA was fairly high in four of the five transformants examined. Microprojectile bombardment of regenerable cultures with YACs may ultimately aid in map-based cloning of agriculturally-important genes.

EFFICIENT REGENERATION AND TRANSFORMATION PROTOCOLS FOR SAFFLOWER (CARTHAMUS TINCT0RIUS L.)

Our goal was to develop efficient regeneration protocols for safflower that could be used in conjunction with Agrobacterium tumefaciens -mediated transformation to introduce genes conferring economically important traits. Direct regeneration of whole plants has been achieved from cotyledon and hypocotyl explants of 30-day-old `Centennial' and `Montola' seedlings. Explants transformed with Ti plasmids containing NPTII and the β-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene produced kanamycin-resistant calli and shoots testing positive for GUS activity. Current work is incorporating the bar gene into appropriate Ti plasmids that will be used to confer glufosinate herbicide resistance to elite safflower cultivars. An esterase gene from Bacillus subtilis will be introduced to confer resistance to Alternaria carthami leaf spot disease.

Early events in microprojectile bombardment: cell viability and particle location

Summary Tungsten and gold particles, coated with plasmid DNA harboring the β-glucuronidase (GUS) and neomycin phosphotransferase II (npt-II) genes, were delivered into tobacco primary leaves and suspension-cultured cells of maize using the helium particle inflow gun. Cell viability and particle localization were determined 1 and 2 days after bombardment. Of the counted particles, 7–10% penetrated into or through the epidermis. Blue spots on tobacco leaves appeared as a blue area around a single, densely stained particle-containing central cell. DNA-coated gold particles provoked smaller spots with less diffusion and gave rise to more individual events than tungsten particles. In more than 90% of the GUS-positive epidermal and mesophyll cells, a particle was detectable within their nucleus. Two days after bombardment, viability had decreased to 1–2% in particle-containing cells. Penetration of a cell by a particle was accompanied by callose formation in the wound area. Dead suspension culture cells of maize without callose formation but containing particles were detected just 1 h post-bombardment. Living cells with callose spots appeared more frequently after bombardment with tungsten than gold. As in tobacco, GUS expression was limited to those cells containing a particle in their nucleus, and the number of particle-containing, viable cells was low after 48 h. The frequency of stable expression events was compared to the number of surviving tobacco leaf cells. On average, four kanamycin-resistant calli or plantlets were recovered per bombarded dish, of which approximately 50% were also GUS-positive. This corresponds to a stable-to-transient ratio of approximately 0.8%, and is similar to the number of particle-containing cells surviving after 48 h.

Genetic Transformation of Peach Tissues by Particle Bombardment

Physical and biological parameters affecting the efficiency of biolistic transformation of peach were optimized using ß-glucuronidase (GUS) as a reporter gene, such that efficiency of transient GUS expression in peach embryo-derived callus was increased markedly. Transient expression was also obtained in embryonic axes, immature embryos, cotyledons, shoot tips, and leaves of peach. Stable expression of a fusion gene combining neomycin phosphotransferase (NPTII) and ß-glucuronidase activities has been achieved in peach embryo calli. Sixty-five kanamycin-resistant callus lines were obtained from 114 pieces of bombarded calli after 4 months of selection. Nineteen of the 65 putative transformant lines produced shoot-like structures. Seven lines were examined to confirm stable transformation using the colorimetric GUS assay and PCR analysis. All seven lines showed GUS activity. PCR analysis confirmed that, in most of the putative transformants, the chimeric GUS/NPTII gene had been incorporated into the peach genome. The transgenic callus lines were very weakly morphogenic, presumably because the callus was 5 years old and no transgenic shoots developed from this callus. Results of this research demonstrate the feasibility of obtaining stable transgenic peach tissue by biolistic transformation.

Differential activity of the mannopine synthase and the CaMV 35S promoters during development of transgenic rapeseed plants

Fusions of the promoter of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S RNA transcript (CaMV 35S) and the mannopine synthase ( mas) gene to the β-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene have been introduced into various cultivars of Brassica napus via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Transgenic rapeseed plants have been also regenerated from winter cultivars (Santana, Arabella) by shoot induction from kanamycin-resistant callus tissues on the medium supplemented with AgNO 3. Transformation was confirmed by Southern hybridization of genomic DNA from primary transformants and PCR analysis of DNA from second generation seedlings. β-glucuronidase activity analyzed by fluorometric assay or histochemical staining indicated a differential expression pattern for the two promoters. Organogenesis from in vitro cultured callus tissues was coupled with a relative increase of CaMV 35S promoter activity and reduction of mas promoter function. In seedlings, the CaMV 35S promoter had maximum activity in the primary roots, while the mas promoter was the most active in the cotyledons. Etiolated seedlings cultured in dark, showed reduced activity of the mas promoter. At rosette stage, both promoters were more active in elder plant parts than in younger ones. The highest activity values were recorded in cotyledons. After bolting, reduced promoter function was detected in upper parts of the transformed plants. Histological staining showed that the CaMV 35S promoter was active in the cortex, the phloem and the vascular cambium, while the mas promoter directed gene expression in the phloem. In conclusion, both promoters were found to be functional in majority of the studied organs of transgenic rapeseed plants, however the promoter activity varied considerably between organs and tissues at various developmental stages.

EXPRESSION OF THE GUS GENE IN AGROBACTERIUM TUMEFACIENS-TRANSFORMED SPINACH PLANTS

Transgenic spinach (Spinacia oleracea L., cv. High Pack) plants were regenerated from callus derived from hypocotyl segments. Explants were cocultivated for 48 h with Agrobacterium tumefaciens harboring pMON 9749 plasmid conferring kanamycin resistance and β-glucuronidase (GUS) activity. To induce callus, the explants were cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) selective medium containing 2 mg L-1 kinetin and 0.5 mg L-1 2,4-D. Shoots developed from the callus upon transfer to selective regeneration medium supplemented with 2 mg L-1 kinetin, 0.01 mg L-1 2,4-D, and 1 mg L-1 GA3. Shoots were rooted on MS medium containing 1 mg L-1 IBA. Excluding the cocultivation medium, all others were supplemented with 50 mg L-1 kanamycin, 100 mg L-1 cefotaxime, and 100 mg L-1 carbenicillin. To confirm transformation, kanamycin-resistant callus and leaf sections from regenerants were assayed for GUS activity using the X-gluc assay. Stable GUS gene expression in transgenic plants was demonstrated. This is the first report of regenerating transformed spinach.

Activity of a chimeric promoter with the doubled CaMV 35S enhancer element in protoplast-derived cells and transgenic plants in maize.

A reproducible and efficient transformation system has been developed for maize that is based on direct DNA uptake into embryogenic protoplasts and regeneration of fertile plants from protoplast-derived transgenic callus tissues. Plasmid DNA, containing the beta-glucuronidase (GUS) gene, under the control of the doubled enhancer element (the -208 to -46 bp upstream fragment) from CaMV 35S promoter, linked to the truncated (up to -389 bp from ATG) promoter of wheat, alpha-amylase gene was introduced into protoplasts from suspension culture of HE/89 genotype. The constructed transformation vectors carried either the neomycin phosphotransferase (NPTII) or phosphinothricin acetyltransferase (PAT) gene as selective marker. The applied DNA uptake protocol has resulted at least in 10-20 resistant calli, or GUS-expressing colonies after treatment of 10(6) protoplasts. Vital GUS staining of microcalli has made possible the shoot regeneration from the GUS-stained tissues. 80-90% of kanamycin or PPT resistant calli showed GUS activity, and transgenic plants were regenerated from more than 140 clones. Both Southern hybridization and PCR analysis showed the presence of introduced foreign genes in the genomic DNA of the transformants. The chimeric promoter, composed of a tissue specific monocot promoter, and the viral enhancer element specified similar expression pattern in maize plants, as it was determined by the full CaMV 35S promoter in dicot and other monocot plants. The highest GUS specific activity was found in older leaves with progressively less activity in young leaves, stem and root. Histochemical localization of GUS revealed promoter function in leaf epidermis, mesophyll and vascular bundles, in the cortex and vascular cylinder of the root. In roots, the meristematic tip region and vascular tissues stained intensively. Selected transformants were grown up to maturity, and second-generation seedlings with segregation for GUS activity were obtained after outcrossing. The GUS-expressing segregants carried also the NPTII gene as shown by Southern hybridization.

Genetic transformation of green bean callus via Agrobacterium mediated DNA transfer

Kanamycin resistant callus was produced from leaf disc or hypocotyl expiants of green bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) when cultured on a defined medium containing 50 mg/l kanamycin after 4 days of co-cultivation with Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain EHA101 containing the binary vector pKYLX71GUS. The presence of neomycin phosphotransferase II (NPT-II) in crude cellular extracts from the kanamycin resistant callus was confirmed by ELISA. The expression of the ß-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene was confirmed by histochemical and fluorimetric analyses. Southern blot border analysis confirmed the integration of the foreign DNA. In addition to the evidence obtained from Southern analysis, the absence of Agrobacterium in the transformed callus cultures was confirmed by microscopic observation and through test cultures. Using the above protocol, bean callus cultures were also transformed with a bean chalcone synthase promoter-GUS fusion. These cultures, when treated with the elicitor glutathione, showed higher levels of GUS expression than the unelicited callus clumps.

Re-evaluation of Conditions for Plant Regeneration and Agrobacterium-Mediated Transformation from Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum)

Conditions for plant regeneration from explants of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) cv. UC82B were studied for optimizing transformation procedure. The best regeneration rate was obtained from cotyledon explants from 8–10-d-old seedlings on a modified Murashige and Skoog medium (1962) with 0·5 mg dm−3 zeatin and 0·5 mg dm−3 indolylacetic acid. Tomato cultivars (UC82B, Castone, Fl Ferline, Monalbo) and a Lycopersicon peruvkmum ‘CMV sel. INRA’ were studied. The cultivarUC82B and the wild Lycopersicon species showed an efficient shoot regeneration potential. Early events in the transformation of tomato cotyledons were analysed using an Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain carrying a binary vector with an nptII (pnos) gene and a reporter GUS-intron (p35S) chimeric gene. Two days after infection, GUS activity appeared specifically at the cut surface. Subepidermal cells were more susceptible to transformation than epidermal cells. When selection for kanamycin resistance was applied 2 d after inoculation, transformed cells were efficiently recovered. Preculture with feeder cells stimulated cell transformation, but reducedregeneration capacity from transformed cells. The optimal transformation rate was observed witha time of preculture of 1 and 2 d. Transformation events for two tomato cultivars (UC82B and Monalbo) occurred at the same rate as 55% of the inoculated explants developed kanamycin resistant calli. However, transformed plants were obtained at different rates of 8% and 14% for cv. Monalbo and cv. UC82B.

Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) cv. ?Centennial?

Efficient callus formation was achieved from cotyledon, stem, and leaf expiants of the domestic safflower cultivar 'Centennial' on MS salts medium containing 1 mg/L BAP and 1 mg/L NAA. Shoot buds were regenerated from 26% of leaf-derived calli on callus induction medium, although attempts to root regenerated shoots were not successful. 'Centennial' expiants inoculated with Agrobacterium tumefaciens containing NPT II and GUS genes produced kanamycin-resistant calli from which buds were regenerated. Transformation and stable integration of transgenes was confirmed by GUS assay and DNA hybridization in kanamycin-resistant calli, and GUS assay in regenerated shoots.

INTRODUCTION OF β-GLUCURONIDASE GENE INTO GINSENG (PANAX CINSENG) BY A TI-PLASMID VECTOR SYSTEM AND ITS EXPRESSION

β-Glucuronidase (GUS) gene of Escherichia coli was introduced into ginseng cells by an Agrobacterium binary vector system and expressed in somatic embryos derived from the cells. A binary vector pBI121 carrying CaMV 35S promoter-GUS gene fusion and a neomycin phosphotransferase gene as selection marker was transferred into Agrobacterium tumefaciens LBA4404. Zygotic embryo cotyledonary segments were co-cultivated with A. tumefaciens and transferred to the medium containg 1 mg 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid/liter, 0.5 mg kinetin/liter, and 100 mg kanamycin/liter. Kanamycin-resistant calli were formed after 3 to 4 weeks of culture. Southern analysis confirmed the resistant calli were transformed with GUS gene. High GUS activities were detected in somatic embryos developed from the calli.

Gene rescue in plants by direct gene transfer of total genomic DNA into protoplasts

To study the possibility of gene rescue in plants by direct gene transfer we chose the Arabidopsis mutant GH50 as a source of donor DNA. GH50 is tolerant of chlorsulfuron, a herbicide of the sulfonylurea class. Tobacco protoplasts were cotransfected with genomic DNA and the plasmid pHP23 which confers kanamycin resistance. A high frequency of cointegration of the plasmid and the genomic DNA was expected, which would allow the tagging of the plant selectable trait with the plasmid DNA. After transfection by electroporation the protoplasts were cultivated on regeneration medium supplemented with either chlorsulfuron or kanamycin as a selective agent. Selection on kanamycin yielded resistant calluses at an absolute transformation frequency (ATF) of 0.8 x 10(-3). Selection on chlorsulfuron yielded resistant calluses at an ATF of 4.7 x 10(-6). When a selection on chlorsulfuron was subsequently applied to the kanamycin resistant calluses, 8% of them showed resistance to this herbicide. Southern analysis carried out on the herbicide resistant transformants detected the presence of the herbicide resistance gene of Arabidopsis into the genome of the transformed tobacco. Segregation analysis showed the presence of the resistance gene and the marker gene in the progeny of the five analysed transformants. 3 transformants showed evidence of genetic linkage between the two genes. In addition we show that using the same technique a kanamycin resistance gene from a transgenic tobacco could be transferred into sugar beet protoplasts at a frequency of 0.17% of the transformants.

Stable transformation of Sorghum bicolor protoplasts with chimeric neomycin phosphotransferase II and β-glucuronidase genes

Parameters influencing the stable transformation of Sorghum bicolor protoplasts with a chimeric neomycin phosphotransferase II (NPT II) gene by electroporation were investigated. The mean number of kanamycin-resistant calli produced increased in direct proportion to the concentration of DNA used for transformation. Linearization of the plasmid doubled the mean number of kanamycin-resistant calli produced, while the addition of carrier DNA had no effect. The copy number (1-4) of integrated genes was low compared with that frequently reported for PEG-mediated transformation. Two strategies for transforming protoplasts with a nonselectable, β-glucuronidase (GUS) gene were compared. One utilized a plasmid containing a CaMV 35S-NPT II gene covalently linked to a CaMV 35S-GUS gene, and the other strategy utilized the two genes on separate plasmids. DNA from all 77 kanamycin-resistant calli analyzed contained restriction fragments hybridizing to the NPT II probe; approximately 70% of the clones from all transformation treatments contained a 1.7-kb EcoRI/HindIII restriction fragment corresponding to the full-length gene. Of the kanamycin-resistant calli, 38-63% (depending on the transformation treatment) contained GUS-hybridizing fragments, and 8-19% contained the full-length gene. The addition of NPT II and GUS genes on a single plasmid or on separate plasmids did not appear to lead to an appreciable difference in the frequency of cointegration of these genes, although an increased proportion of the plasmid bearing the nonselectable (GUS) gene appeared to favor its cointegration.

Transformation of Medicago sativa L. Using a Ti Plasmid Derived Vector

A cultivar of Medicago sativa was transformed with Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain At81 binary-vector carrying the plasmid pKan3A, with the neomycin phosphotransferase gene under the control of the mannopine biosynthesis promoter. Stem segments were infected with the bacterium and kanamycin resistant calli were obtained; plant regeneration via somatic embryogenesis and polyembryogenesis was achieved only in media devoid of the antibiotic. Genetic transformation was confirmed by the presence of the structural gene through DNA-DNA hybridization and the enzymatic assay showed its functional expression. Mesophyll protoplasts, leaf calli and S1 progeny of transformed plants grew in the presence of kanamycin (100 μgml-1). Results are discussed in relation to the use of kanamycin-resistant plants in somatic hybridization in the genus Medicago.

Enhancer sequences from Arabidopsis thaliana obtained by library transformation of Nicotiana tabacum

In this paper we report on the use of a bidirectional enhancer cloning vehicle to isolate and characterize new enhancer sequences from Arabidopsis thaliana. A library of A. thaliana genomic Sau3A segments was constructed in Escherichia coli in the binary plasmid enhancer cloning vehicle pROA97. The T-DNA based vector carries abbreviated TATA regions from the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S transcription unit upstream of two genes. The library was transferred via triparental mating into Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The neomycin phosphotransferase II gene was used for selection of kanamycin-resistant transformed tobacco callus cells. Approximately 1100 transgenic plants were regenerated and assayed for expression of the E. coli beta-glucuronidase (GUS) gene in leaves, stems, roots, or seeds. Plasmids carrying putative enhancer sequences were rescued from the genomes of transgenic plants and the cloned sequences were assayed for enhancer function in genetic selection experiments. Plants were regenerated from the kanamycin-resistant calli obtained in the secondary transformation experiments. Histochemical analysis of GUS activity in the leaf, stem, and root tissues of transgenic plants showed a variety of expression patterns. The DNA sequences are presented of five Arabidopsis segments which confer enhancer function.

Agrobacterium-mediated DNA transfer in sugar pine

DNA transfer using Agrobacterium tumefaciens has been demonstrated in sugar pine, Pinus lambertiana Dougl. Shoots derived from cytokinin-treated cotyledons formed galls after inoculation with A. tumefaciens strains containing the plasmid pTiBo542. A selectable marker, neomycin phosphotransferase II, conferring resistance to kanamycin, was transferred into sugar pine using a binary armed vector system. Callus proliferated from the galls grew without hormones and in some cases, kanamycin-resistant callus could be cultured. Southern blots provided evidence of physical transfer of T-DNA and the nptII gene. Expression of the nptII gene under control of the nos promoter was demonstrated by neomycin phosphotransferase assays. Several aspects of DNA transfer were similar to those previously observed in angiosperms transformed by A. tumefaciens. This is the first evidence for DNA transfer by Agrobacterium in this species and the first physical evidence for transfer in any pine. These results bring us closer to genetic engineering in this commercially important genus of forest trees.

Co-transformation of indica rice protoplasts with gusA and neo genes

Protoplasts of the indica rice (Oryza sativa L.) variety, IR54, were transiently transformed with the gusA gene and stably transformed with both the neo and gusA genes. We show that PEG-mediated co-transformation of protoplasts with two genes on separate plasmids coupled with selection on kanamycin is an effective way of transferring foreign gene(s) into the indica rice genome. The efficiency of co-transformation was generally 20-30%, i.e. the frequency of kanamycin-resistant calli having both the neo and gusA active genes. Southern blot analysis using a probe for gusA indicated integration of several copies of the gene, often as head to tail tandem repeats.

High-frequency generation of transgenic tobacco plants after modified leaf disk cocultivation withAgrobacterium tumefaciens

A modified protocol for theAgrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of tobacco (Nicotina tabacum L.) leaf disks was developed for greater recovery of transgenic plants. Modifications include transformation ofAgrobacterium by a freeze-thaw procedure, initial cocultivation of leaf disks andAgrobacterium under vacuum, subsequent growth with nurse cells for one week, rooting of shoots in medium lacking carbenicillin, longer, growth in rooting medium, and a shortened “hardening” step. By this procedure, an average of 1.3 kanamycin-resistant calli were obtained per leaf disk, and 38% of, the callus cultures used were regenerated to produce 133 independently transformed tobacco plants.