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Browsing by Author "Dan, Yinghui"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Development of Efficient Plant Regeneration and Transformation System for Impatiens Using Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Multiple Bud Cultures as Explants
    Dan, Yinghui; Baxter, Aaron; Zhang, Song; Pantazis, Christopher J.; Veilleux, Richard E. (BMC, 2010-08-09)
    Background: Impatiens (Impatiens walleriana) is a top selling floriculture crop. The potential for genetic transformation of Impatiens to introduce novel flower colors or virus resistance has been limited by its general recalcitrance to tissue culture and transformation manipulations. We have established a regeneration and transformation system for Impatiens that provides new alternatives to genetic improvement of this crop. Results: In a first step towards the development of transgenic INSV-resistant Impatiens, we developed an efficient plant regeneration system using hypocotyl segments containing cotyledonary nodes as explants. With this regeneration system, 80% of explants produced an average of 32.3 elongated shoots per initial explant plated, with up to 167 elongated shoots produced per explant. Rooting efficiency was high, and 100% of shoots produced roots within 12 days under optimal conditions, allowing plant regeneration within approximately 8 weeks. Using this regeneration system, we developed an efficient Agrobacterium-mediated Impatiens transformation method using in vitro multiple bud cultures as explants and a binary plasmid (pHB2892) bearing gfp and nptII genes. Transgenic Impatiens plants, with a frequency up to 58.9%, were obtained within 12 to 16 weeks from inoculation to transfer of transgenic plants to soil. Transgenic plants were confirmed by Southern blot, phenotypic assays and T1 segregation analysis. Transgene expression was observed in leaves, stems, roots, flowers, and fruit. The transgenic plants were fertile and phenotypically normal. Conclusion: We report the development of a simple and efficient Agrobacterium-mediated transformation system for Impatiens. To the best of our knowledge, there have been no reports of Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of Impatiens with experimental evidence of stable integration of T-DNA and of Agrobacterium-mediated transformation method for plants using in vitro maintained multiple bud cultures as explants. This transformation system has the advantages of 1) efficient, simple and rapid regeneration and transformation (with no need for sterilization or a greenhouse to grow stock plants), 2) flexibility (available all the time) for in vitro manipulation, 3) uniform and desirable green tissue explants for both nuclear and plastid transformation using Agrobacteriummediated and biolistics methods, 4) no somaclonal variation and 5) resolution of necrosis of Agrobacteriuminoculated tissues.
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    Genetic studies of phenotypic variants in the woodland strawberry, (Fragaria vesca)
    Holt, Sarah Hudson (Virginia Tech, 2011-09-02)
    The diploid woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is a rapidly developing translational model for members of the family Rosaceae and other plants. This thesis represents some of the first forward genetics studies evaluating putative T-DNA insertional mutants in F. vesca. The observed phenotypes include alterations to floral development, anthocyanin pigmentation and leaf structure. The floral development mutant named green petal (gp) was not associated with the T-DNA insertions present. Based on similar phenotypes induced by mutation of transcription factors involved in floral development of Arabidopsis thaliana, we used a BLAST search of the F. vesca genome hybrid gene models to identify 30 candidate genes that may have caused the gp phenotype. Expression analysis of these genes revealed that it was due to a 37 bp deletion in a SEPALLATA3-like E-Class MADS box transcription factor. This mutation altered organ structure in the three inner whorls of the flower, affecting fertility and fruit development. The deletion was demonstrated to segregate with the mutant phenotype in a segregating population of 92 individuals, 22 of which had green petals. The anthocyanin biosynthesis mutant named white runner (wr) lacked red pigmentation in the stems and runners. The T-DNA insertion in this line was located in a highly repetitive LTR retrotransposon region, which complicated analysis. Segregation analysis of the wr lines revealed that the phenotype was unassociated with the T-DNA insertion as well. We used a targeted expression analysis of three critical structural genes in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway that revealed a 20 bp deletion in the gene encoding flavanone 3-hydroxylase, an enzyme necessary for the production of flavonols, anthocyanins and proanthocyanidins. In an F2 segregating population, this deletion co-segregated with the phenotype. The third mutant line presented here displayed a curly leaf (cl) phenotype and was found to harbor a T-DNA insertion in a gene encoding a putative erythroblast macrophage attacher protein (EMP). Sequence and protein domain analysis indicated that FvEMP was related to the mammalian EMP protein that functions in cytoskeletal dynamics and red blood cell enucleation. Complementation analysis confirmed that introduction of the wild type FvEMP gene into the cl mutant plants restored wild type leaf phenotype. Further morphological analysis revealed additional pleiotropic effects of the mutation, including abnormalities in seed set and germination, pollen tube growth, adhesion of the abaxial epidermal layer to the mesophyll layer and reduced petiolule length. These phenotypes are consistent with actin binding and microtubule associated protein mutants in other plant species. Insertional mutagenesis is a critical molecular tool for model crop development. These studies highlight the precautions that must be taken when evaluating insertional mutants. These mutants are excellent tools for studying their respective disrupted gene function. The in depth molecular analysis of the mutants presented in this work was only possible because of the availability of the Fragaria vesca genome which was used extensively to identify T-DNA insertion sites and recover candidate gene sequences for expression analysis.
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    Regeneration and Transformation of Impatiens walleriana Using Cotyledonary Node Culture
    Baxter, Aaron Jacob (Virginia Tech, 2005-09-08)
    Impatiens walleriana, commonly grown as a herbaceous annual, is susceptible to Impatiens Necrotic Spot Virus (INSV). A lack of resistant cultivars leaves growers with the sole option of destroying infected plants before INSV spreads throughout their entire crop. Therefore, the introduction of INSV resistant cultivars would have the potential to save Impatiens growers a substantial amount of money. Virus resistance has been successfully conveyed in several crops by insertion of pathogen DNA into the host plant. One method of generating transgenic plants involves the use of Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer. A commonly used technique involves transformation of explant tissue and subsequent regeneration in vitro under aseptic conditions. However, prior to our research there was no regeneration protocol suitable for Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of Impatiens walleriana available. Herein we report the development of a new method for regeneration of Impatiens walleriana using cotyledonary node culture. Using this technique, four regeneration media amended with 1, 3, 5, or 7µM of thidiazuron were evaluated for their ability to induce de novo shoot production in cotyledonary node explants, and evaluated for number of shoots produced per explant. Results showed a significantly greater frequency of regeneration and number of shoots per explant using media amended with 1µM of thidiazuron. This technique has shown to be repeatable and is not susceptible to ploidy instability. Unfortunately, damage to the cotyledonary node explants during Agrobacterium inoculation and transfection prevented regeneration of transformed shoots in several attempts. However, transient GFP expression after transfection of shoot pads derived from cotyledonary nodes with Agrobacterium strain LBA 4404 containing plasmid pHB2829 with nptII and S-GFP was obtained, indicating the possibility for this regeneration protocol to derive stably transformed Impatiens with INSV resistance.