Aphid-resistant Transgenic Tobacco Plants Expressing Modified gna Gene

A gene sequence coding for the precursor of Galanthus nivalis agglutinin (GNA) was modified by site-directed mutagenesis to change very low usage bias codons to higher usage bias ones for improvement of the gene expression in transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) plants. Results from Western blot analysis of some of the transgenic tobacco plants showed that the expression level of GNA in plants transformed with the modified gene GNA34m reached 0.25% of total soluble proteins, while that of the GNA34 gene transgenic plants was 0.17%. Since the GNA expression level increased, the aphid resistance of GNA34m transgenic plants were also enhanced significantly as judged by a 71.0% aphid population inhibition in insect bioassay of GNA34m transformed plants and 63.7% for the plants transformed with the natural GNA34 gene.

Photosynthetic Characteristics of Transgenic Rice Plants Overexpressing Maize Phosphoenopyruvate Carboxylase

用转PEPC、PPDK、NADP_ME、PEPC +PPDK 双基因水稻 (OryzasativaL .)及原种为材料 ,以光合酶活性、饱和光合速率及PSⅡ光化学效率 (Fv/Fm)为指标 ,研究了转PEPC基因水稻的光合生理特征。结果如下 :转PEPC基因水稻PEPC活性比原种提高 2 0倍 ;饱和光合速率比原种高 5 5 % ;用高光强或人工光氧化剂甲基紫精 (MV)处理后 ,与原种相比 ,转PEPC基因水稻光化学效率下降较少 ,证明其耐光抑制、耐光氧化能力增强 ,测定其光合日变化看出 :在 1d中不同时间 ,转PEPC基因水稻的光合速率均高于原种 ,且与PEPC活性的日变化有相似的趋势。上述结果为转PEPC基因水稻的生理机制和育种研究提供了依据和途径。

Features,Mechanisms and Applies of Post-transcriptional Gene Silencing in Transgenic Plants

Since transgene silencing was found in transgenic plants,many scholars have studied it extensively and considered that it has three functional mechanisms:post dependent gene silencing,transcriptional gene silencing,post transcriptional gene silencing.At the moment,people have mainly focused on the study of post transcriptional gene silencing and found its features:extensivity,conduction and peculiarity,also put forward some hypothesis for its mechanisms,for example,RNA threshold model,aberrant RNA model,inter or intra molecular base pairing model and so on.Furthermore,post transcriptional gene silencing is being applied in gene engineering of plants.Recently the people have found that post transcriptional gene silencing has bearing on capacity plants resisting virus.Many researchers have studied post transcriptional gene silencing,but there are some questions which need be solved in the future.This article summarizes progresses in features,mechanisms,applies of post transcriptional gene silencing about transgenic plants.

Fast,simple,efficient Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated transformation system to non-heading Chinese cabbage with transgenic roots

Non-heading Chinese cabbage, a variety of Brassica campestris, is an important vegetable crop in the Yangtze River Basin of China. However,the immaturity of its stable transformation system and its low transformation efficiency limit gene function research on non-heading Chinese cabbage. Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated(ARM) transgenic technology is a rapid and effective transformation method that has not yet been established for non-heading Chinese cabbage plants. Here, we optimized conventional ARM approaches(one-step and two-step transformation methods) suitable for living non-heading Chinese cabbage plants in nonsterile environments. Transgenic roots in composite non-heading Chinese cabbage plants were identified using phenotypic detection, fluorescence observation, and PCR analysis. The transformation efficiency of a two-step method on four five-day-old non-heading Chinese cabbage seedlings(Suzhouqing, Huangmeigui, Wuyueman, and Sijiu Caixin) was 43.33%-51.09%, whereas using the stout hypocotyl resulted in a transformation efficiency of 54.88% for the 30-day-old Sijiu Caixin.The one-step method outperformed the two-step method;the transformation efficiency of different varieties was above 60%, and both methods can be used to obtain transgenic roots for functional studies within one month. Finally, optimized ARM transformation methods can easily,quickly, and effectively produce composite non-heading Chinese cabbage plants with transgenic roots, providing a reliable foundation for gene function research and non-heading Chinese cabbage genetic improvement breeding.

Marker_Free: a Novel Tendency of Transgenic Plants

Marker free is a rapidly developed strategy that offers a new approach for the elimination of public concerns caused by the selectable marker genes conferring antibiotic or herbicide resistance and so on. Furthermore, marker_free transgenic plants (MFTPs) have a number of special advantages, such as decreasing the concerns about safety of selectable marker and stacking transgenes progressively into transgenic plants, which significantly owns potential application value. Major approaches developed recently for obtaining MFTPs were reviewed in this paper.

Risk Assessment of Synergism and Recombination on the Transgenic Plants Containing Viral Movement Protein and Replicase Genes

The transgenic tobacco plants transformed with movement protein gene of Tomato mosaic virus (ToMV) or Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and partial replicase gene of Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) P1 isolate (CMV-P1), were inoculated with Potato virus X, Potato virus Y, TMV and CMV isolate RB (CMV-RB), respectively. Symptom observation showed there were no symptom differences in transgenic tobacco plants as compared with those in non-transgenie tobacco plants. ELISA also illustrated that the virus concentrations in the transgenic plants were similar to those in non-transgenic plants, indicating that no synergism is found in these plants. The transgenic tobacco plants expressing movement protein gene of ToMV or partial replicase gene of CMV-P1 were inoculated with TMV and CMV-RB, respectively. The local or systemic infected leaves were then used for elucidation of the possible virus recombination in transgenic plants with biological infectivity test, ELISA and immuno-capture RT-PCR. Within 16 months, no recombination was found between transformed genes and inoculated virus genomes. The research provides fundamental data for understanding of the possible risk of the transgenic plants expressing viral sequences.

Leafy head formation of the progenies of transgenic plants of Chinese cabbage with exogenous auxin genes

The experiment was performed to evaluate the progenies of plant lines transgenic for auxin synthesis genes derived from Ri T-DNA. Four lines of the transgenic plants were selfcrossed and the foreign auxin genes in plants of T5 generation were confirmed by Southern hybridization. Two lines, D1232 and D1653, showed earlier folding of expanding leaves than untransformed line and therefore had early initiation of leaf y head. Leaf cuttings derived from plant of transgenic line D1653 produced more adventitious roots than the control whereas the cuttings from folding leaves had much more roots than rosette leaves at folding stage, and the cuttings from head leaves had more roots than rosette leaves at heading stage. It is demonstrated that early folding of transgenic leaf may be caused by the relatively higher concentration of auxin. These plant lines with auxin transgenes can be used for the study of hormonal regulation in differentiation and development of plant organs nd for the breeding of new varietywith rapid growth trait.

Enhanced Stem Nematode Resistance of Transgenic Sweetpotato Plants Expressing Oryzacystatin-I Gene

Enhanced stem nematode resistance of transgenic sweetpotato （cv. Lizixiang） was achieved using Oryzacystatin-I （OCI） gene with Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. A. tumefaciens strain EHA105 harbors a binary vector pCAMBIA1301 with OCI gene, gusA gene and hptII gene. Selection culture was conducted using 25 mg L-1 hygromycin. A total of 1 715 plants were produced from the inoculated 1 450 cell aggregates of Lizixiang via somatic embryogenesis. GUS assay and PCR analysis of the putative transgenic plants randomly sampled showed that 90.54% of them were transgenic plants. Transgenic plants exhibited significantly enhanced resistance to stem nematodes compared to the untransformed control plants by the field evaluation with stem nematodes. Stable integration of the OCI gene into the genome of resistant transgenic plants was confirmed by Southern blot analysis, and the copy number of integrated OCI gene ranged from 1 to 4. Transgene overexpression in stem nematode-resistant plants was demonstrated by quantitative real-time PCR analysis. This study provides a way for improving stem nematode resistance in sweetpotato.

Genetic and agronomic traits stability of marker-free transgenic wheat plants generated from Agrobacterium-mediated co-transformation in T2 and T3 generations

Genetically modified wheat has not been commercially utilized in agriculture largely due to regulatory hurdles associated with traditional transformation methods. Development of marker-free transgenic wheat plants will help to facilitate biosafety evaluation and the eventual environmental release of transgenic wheat varieties. In this study, the marker-free transgenic wheat plants previously obtained by Agrobacterium-mediated co-transformation of double T-DNAs vector were identified by fluorescence in situ hybridization(FISH) in the T1 generation, and their genetic stability and agronomic traits were analyzed in T2 and T3 generations. FISH analysis indicated that the transgene often integrated into a position at the distal region of wheat chromosomes. Furthermore, we show that the GUS transgene was stably inherited in the marker-free transgenic plants in T1 to T3 generations. No significant differences in agronomic traits or grain characteristics were observed in T3 generation, with the exception of a small variation in spike length and grains per spike in a few lines. The selection marker of bar gene was not found in the transgenic plants through T1 to T3 generations. The results from this investigation lay a solid foundation for the potential application of the marker-free transgenic wheat plants achieved through the co-transformation of double T-DNAs vector by Agrobacterium in agriculture after biosafty evaluation.

Rabbit Defensin(NP-1) Gene Transformation of Wheat and In Vitro Microbicidal Activity Assay of Transgenic Plants

Monocot high expression vector pBARUNP1, harboring rabbit defensin(NP 1) gene and selective bar gene for resistance to the herbicide Basta, were constructed and then transferred into immature embryos of wheat (“Bobwhite” and “Zhong 60634”)via particle bombardment. Southern and RNA dot blots showed the stable integration and transcription of foreign NP 1 gene in the wheat genome. Furthermore, in vitro microbicidal activity assay indicated the proper translation of defensin. Crude protein extraction of transgenic plants exhibited to some extent cytotoxic to several pathogens including G. saubinetii, B. subtilis, E.coli, and A. tumefaciens.

Construction of Plant Expression Vector Carrying Two Insecticidal Genes and Obtain Insect resistant Transgenic Tobacco Plants

A plant expression vector carrying both pea lectin gene and Soybean trypsin inhibitor gene has been constructed and transferred into tobacco via Agrobacterium mediated transformation. Transgenic plants are further confirmed by ELISA, PCR and PCR Southern assays. Results of bioassays show that transgenic plants display notably inhibitory effects to larvae development and survival of Heliothis armigera Hubner.

Techniques for Detecting Functional Protein Expression in Transgenic Plants

With the development of plant genetic engineering techniques, numerous genetically modified plants have been generated. At the same time, the technologies for detecting transgenic organisms get improved constantly, which also promotes the scientific identification, evaluation and commercial cultivation of transgenic plants. In this review, we evaluate various detection methods for transgenic plants at the level of protein expression.

Copper-Controllable, Site-Specific DMA Excision in Transgenic Plants

A copper-inducible, Cre-loxP recombination-mediated DNA excision system has been developed in transgenic tobacco plants. The copper inducible system derived from yeast was used for the control of the expression of the Cre recombinase. Upon copper induction, the GVS reporter gene expression unit flanked by two direct lox sites was excised from the transgenic tobacco genome. Quantitative fluorometric GUS assays, Northern blot and PCR analyses showed a high-efficient, copper-dependent and Cre-loxP mediated DNA recombination in all the tested transgenic lines. The copper inducible foreign gene excision might be of great potential in genetic control of transgenic crops.

Expression of Fusion Lytic Peptides Promotes Fungal Disease Resistance in Transgenic Plants

Many organisms produce small proteins which exhibit antimicrobial activities. In recent decades, the biological role of antimicrobial peptides (AMP) has been recognized as the main factor in the defense mechanisms against a broad range of pathogenic microbes. The increased worldwide incidence of microbial resistance to antibiotics makes AMPs promising alternative for the control of microbial disease. Exploring the potential of AMPs in transgenic crops could lead to the development of new and improved cultivars which are resistant to various economically important diseases. In the present study, two fusion lytic peptide gene constructs coding for antimicrobial peptides were expressed in Nicotiana benthamiana tobacco plants and tested against three fungal pathogens, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Rhizoctonia solani, and Pythium sp. Detached-leaf bioassay was employed for the transgenic plants carrying the fusion lytic peptide constructs (ORF13 and RSA1), transgenic vector only control plants (1234), and wild-type control plants (WT) against the three fungal pathogens. Symptom area of each leaf was measured with high accuracy and data were recorded and processed by statistical analyses. The results showed that transgenic plant lines ORF13 and RSL1 have substantial resistance to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum infection, producing significantly smaller lesion areas compared to vector only plant line 1234 and wild type plants. These transgenic lines also provided resistance against Rhizoctonia solani, however, these lines were not effective against the other fungal pathogen Pythium sp.

Cloning of Promoter of Chinese Bean GRP 1.8 Gene and Characterization of Its Function in Transgenic Tobacco Plants

In order to learn the expression pattern of GRP1 8(glycine rich protein) gene promoter in transgenic plants and to explore its potential application in plant genetic engineering for vascular specific expression of interested genes, GRP 1 8 promoter was amplified by PCR from Chinese bean genomic DNA. The intermediate vector was constructed by inserting vascular specific expression promoter of GRP 1 8 gene in vector pBI 101. The regenerated tobacco plants obtained were analyzed by PCR to select the putative transgenic plants. The histochemical localization of GUS( β D glucosidase) activity indicates that as for that of GRP 1 8 promoter we can confer the vascular specific expression of GUS gene.

Science Letters:Expression of a begomoviral DNAβ gene in transgenic Nicotiana plants induced abnormal cell division

An increasing number of monopartite begomoviruses are being identified that a satellite molecule (DNAβ) is required to induce typical symptoms in host plants. DNAβ encodes a single gene (termed βC1) encoded in the complementary-sense. We have produced transgenic Nicotiana benthamiana and N. tabacum plants expressing theβC1 gene of a DNAβ associated with Tomato yellow leaf curl China virus (TYLCCNV), under the control of the Cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter. Transgenic plants expressing βC1 showed severe developmental abnormalities in both species. Microscopic analysis of sections of both transgenic and non-transgenic N. tabacum leaves showed abnormal outgrowths of transgenic N. tabacum to be due to disorganized cell division (hyperplasia) of spongy and palisade parenchyma. Immuno-gold labeling of sections with a polyclonal antibody against the βC1 protein showed that the βC1 protein accumulated in the nuclei of cells. The possible biological function of the βC1 protein was discussed.

Expression of E. coli heat-labile enterotoxin B subunit in transgenic tobacco plants

Objective ： To construct plant transformation vector containing Escherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin B subunit （LT-B） gene and generate LT-B transgenic tobacco plants. Methods： The LT-B coding sequence was amplified from pMMB68 by PCR, subcloned into middle vector pUCmT and binary vector pBI121 to obtain plant expression vector pBI-LTB, in which LT-B expression was controlled under the Cauliflower mosaic virus （CaMV） 35S promoter. The tobacco plants （Nicotiana tobacum L. Cuttivar Xanthi） were transformed by co-cultivating leaf discs method via Agrobacterium tumefaciens LBA4404 harboring the plant expression vector. The regenerated transgenic tobacco plants were selected by kanamycin and confirmed by PCR, Southern blot, Western blot and ELISA. Resuits： LT-B gene integrated in the tobacco genomic DNA and were expressed in 9 strains of transgenic tobacco plants. The yield was varied from 3. 36-10. 56 ng/mg total soluble tobacco leaf protein. Conclusion： The plant binary expression vector pBI-LTB was constructed successfully, and transgenic LT-B tobacco plants was generated, and confirmed by Southern blot. The protein LT-B expressed by engineered plants was identified by Western blot analysis and had the expected molecular weight of LT-B pentamer protein. This result is an important step close to developing an edible vaccine and supplying a mucasal immunoajuvant, which will contribute to the preven- tion of mucosaroute evading pathogen.

The Application of TDZ in Enhancing Regeneration of Transgenic Plants

At present, transgenic plants are globally grown. Availability of a reliable regeneration system predominantly from a single transformed cell is the prerequisites for gene transfer, but regeneration is still a key

Identification of Bt-transgenic Rice Plants for Resistance to Stripe Stem Borer (Chilo suppressalis) and Genetic Analysis of the Transgenes

Resistance to herbicide Basta was used to identify Bt-transgenic rice plants and the progenies of crosses between the Bt-transgenic rice and the rice varieties cultivated in the Huang Huai area of China. The results demonstrated that the Basta-positive rice plants were highly resistant to stripe stem borer (Chilo sup-pressalis) both in the laboratory and field tests. Both cryIA (b) and bar genes were expressed and co-inherited in both self ing and crossing progenies. Mendelian segregation of the marker gene bar was observed in F2 and BC1 progenies. The results implicates that it is possible to transfer cryIA (b) gene into other cultivated varieties through crosses and back crosses.

Transformation of Orychophragmus violaceus Using Agrobacterium tumefaciens And Regeneration of Transgenic Plantsa

In this paper, we reported firstly the transgenic plants of Orychophragmus violateus in the world. Excised cotyledon and hypocotyls of Orychophragmus violaceus were used as explants for genetic transformation. After 2-3 days of co-cultivation with Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain A208SE(PROA93),the hypocotyls and cotyledon were transferred onto selection medium containing 25 mg/L Km and 250 mg/L Ap. 8 weeks later, shoots emerged,then the shoots were excised and transferred onto root medium containing 25 mg/L Km and 100 mg/L Cef. The roots were formed within 4-5 weeks.The whole plants were transplanted into pots and grew well. The frequency of plant regeneration of hypocotyls was about 30%,and that of cotyledon was 51%.The regenerated plants showed high enzymatic activities ofglucuronidase and neomycin phosphotransferase II. Southern blot analysis confirmed that NPT II gene had been stably integrated into the chromosomal genome of Orychophragmus violaceus .the transformation frequency of hypocotyls was 10%,and that of cotyledon was 5.5%.