抗逆调节转录因子DREB1B基因转化多年生黑麦草的研究

以逆境诱导型启动子rd29B为驱动,分别构建了含有抗逆调节转录因子DREB1B基因的表达载体pBAC123、pBAC128,选择标记为bar基因.用高压氦气基因枪PDS1000/He分别将表达载体和p35SIH3导入多年生黑麦草(Lolium perenne)品种Topgun成熟胚的愈伤组织.经除草剂Bialaphos抗性筛选和植株再生,获得了62株转基因植株.经PCR、Dot-blotting分子检测,DREB1B基因已整合到多年生黑麦草部分转基因株系的基因组中.用5种不同浓度的除草剂涂抹黑麦草叶片,非转基因植株表现为不抗,而转基因植株最高可以抗135~200 mg/L.脯氨酸含量测定表明,使用15%PEG8000处理后,转基因植株的叶片脯氨酸含量比非转基因植株提高1倍左右.经25 d人工温室干旱处理,有5棵转基因植株存活;复水后,有3棵植株恢复正常生长.结果表明,利用逆境诱导型启动子(rd29B)来增强外源DREB1B基因的表达,能显著改良黑麦草的抗旱能力.     

转基因白桦中GUS基因表达的定量分析

以转基因白桦（Betula platyphylla）为材料,采用单酶切结合Southern杂交的方法揭示不同转基因植株中GUS基因的整合拷贝数为1—4个。采用组织化学染色法定性分析不同整合方式转基因白桦植株中GUS基因的表达。结果表明,11个转基因植株中有2株出现了GUS基因沉默,其余植株均有不同水平的GUS表达。在此基础上应用分光光度法定量分析不同拷贝数的GUS转基因白桦中β-葡萄糖醛酸酶活性。结果表明,在11个转基因尢性系中除2个株系的GUS基因沉默外,其它9个转基因植株中GUS酶活力差异明显,但这种差异与GUS基因的拷贝数没有必然联系。     

过表达ZmSKIP基因提高烟草抗低温胁迫的能力

以野生型和过表达ZmSKIP基因烟草为试材, 研究了低温胁迫下过表达ZmSKIP对烟草抗氧化能力的影响。测定了不同低温处理时间下过表达ZmSKIP转基因烟草T3代植株和野生型植株抗氧化酶如超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）、过氧化氢酶（CAT）、过氧化物酶（POD）活性和丙二醛（MDA）含量以及相对电导率, 结果表明, 低温下, 相对于野生型植株, 转基因烟草具有较高的抗氧化酶活性和较低的相对电导率和MDA含量, 说明过表达ZmSKIP提高了转基因植株的耐低温胁迫能力。     

细菌乙酰胆碱氧化酶基因（codA）在烟草的表达与抗盐能力的分析

将土壤细菌（A.globiformis)的乙酰胆碱氧化酶（COD）基因（codA)通过农杆菌介导转入到烟草中,应用抗性筛选得了抗性植株,PCR检测结果表明：codA已整合到抗性植株染色体中;Western印迹鉴定及金标免疫分子定位的结果表明：乙酰胆碱氧化酶基因（codA已整合到抗性植株染色体中;Western印迹鉴定及金标免疫分子定位的结果表明：乙酰胆碱氧化酶基因（codA)在转基因烟草中得到表达,表达产物COD定位在叶绿体中,通过对转基因植株的抗盐能力分析,结果表明转基因植株比对照植株具有更高的抗盐性,其中幼小植株（1.0-1.5cm)可在400mmol/LNaCl的培养基上存活30天以上,并获得具有一定抗盐性状的转基因植株（T4-400）,能在300mmol/LNaCl浓度下较好生长;较大植株（6-8cm）能在400mmol/LNaCl浓度下较好生长。     

转入盐地碱蓬谷胱甘肽转移酶和过氧化氢酶基因增强水稻幼苗对低温胁迫的抗性

以水稻（Oryza sativa L.）品种中花11号成熟种子为材料,利用农杆菌介导法将盐地碱蓬的GST（谷胱甘肽转移酶）单基因和GST＋CAT1（catalase 1）双基因转入低温敏感水稻品种中花11号,并对T4代转基因水稻幼苗的抗低温特性进行了分析。结果显示,低温处理后,转基因植株的GST和CAT活性都比未转入这两种基因的对照高;且PSⅡ最大光化学效率也高于非转基因对照;而H2O2和MDA（malondialdehyde）含量及细胞膜透性则低于对照。说明转基因水稻幼苗GST和GST＋CAT1的表达提高了对低温胁迫的抗性。     

马铃薯StCIPK11的克隆及响应干旱胁迫分析

明确马铃薯StCIPK11在响应干旱胁迫信号传导中的功能和作用机制，为深入研究StCIPK11响应马铃薯抗旱调控的分子机制提供理论依据。利用同源重组法和人工microRNA技术构建马铃薯StCIPK11过表达载体和干扰表达载体，通过根癌农杆菌介导法分别将其转入马铃薯栽培品种‘大西洋’中。RT-qPCR结果表明，过表达植株StCIPK11的表达量是非转基因植株（NT）的11.59和21.76倍，干扰表达植株StCIPK11干扰程度达到78%。经PEG模拟干旱胁迫，过表达植株叶片中丙二醛含量显著高于NT植株，脯氨酸含量、抗氧化酶（超氧化物歧化酶、过氧化物酶）活性均低于NT植株；StCIPK11干扰表达植株则表现出相反的趋势。StCIPK11参与了干旱胁迫应答过程，StCIPK11干扰表达可以降低马铃薯植株对水分胁迫的敏感性。     

超量表达MrCN基因提高烟草植株对TMV的抗性

利用农杆菌介导的遗传转化法将含有普通烟草Ubi．U4启动子驱动MrCN基因表达的元件导入TMV敏感烟草品种K326中,对筛选鉴定出的T0代转基因植株接种TMV,测定其接种前后不同时期的理化指标,以接种TMV的野生型植株为对照。结果显示,转基因植株和野生型植株接种TMV前叶绿素（Chl）和MDA含量YLSOD、POD和CAT酶活力均无显著差异,但接种TMV后野生型植株Chl含量逐渐降低,转基因植株Chl含量先增后降,在接种TMV后5d时转基因植株叶片Chl含量显著高于野生型植株。接种前期（0-3d）转基因植株MDA含量略低于野生型植株,但差异不显著;但接种后期（3～5d）前者的MDA含量显著低于后者。接种TMV后转基因植株中SOD、POD及CAT酶活性变化幅度较野生型植株高,以CAT的变幅最为显著。另外,Real-timePCR分析结果表明,接种TMV后3d时转基因植株删蹦、PR-1α及NrCN表达量均显著高于野生型植株。以上结果表明,通过转基因技术提高烟草抗病基NNrCN的表达量,能提高防御酶活性及病程相关基因的表达量,从而延缓植株感染TMV的发病时间,增强敏感植株对TMV的抗性。     

水稻转基因植株后代中外源基因异常分离的研究

以用农杆菌介导法育成的日本晴等3个品种（系）的转基因水稻为材料,对外源基因的分离情况进行了研究。这几份转基因水稻都携带串联排列的抗虫基因cry1Ab和报告基因gusA等基因,在自交后代中,cry1Ab和gusA协同分离,但阳性植株与阴性植株之比都显著小于3：1,阴性植株显著偏多,以杂合转基因植株（gusA1-)作母本植株,与常规品种（-1－）杂交所得测交F1,阳性植株（＋／－）和阴性植株（－／－）的比例基本符合1：1,在反交时,阴性植株与阳性植株之比显著大于1：1的比例,比较日本晴转基因后代中gusA阳性株与阴性株的结实率发现,前者的结实率显著低于后者,综合上述结果可以看出,携带crylAb等转基因的花粉存在竞争劣势,可能是导致外源基因异常分离的主要原因。     

一种基于PCR技术鉴定单拷贝转基因烟草的方法

为了鉴定携带单拷贝外源基因的转基因烟草植株,以烟草核基因组上已知的单拷贝内源基因（RNR2）为内参,转基因烟草植株基因组DNA为模板,在同一PCR反应体系中扩增内源基因（RNR2）和外源目的基因（NPTⅡ）。反应产物在琼脂糖凝胶上电泳,获得了预期大小的两条特异性扩增条带。经ImageJ软件捕捉分析两条目的条带的灰度比,当T1代转基因烟草植株中外源基因与内源基因的扩增条带灰度比为1时,所检测植株即为单拷贝外源基因的转基因烟草植株。孟德尔经典遗传学方法证实了上述检测结果高度可信。     

甘蓝型油菜Fad2基因的RNA干扰及无筛选标记高油酸含量转基因油菜新种质的获得

利用已获得的油莱种子贮存蛋白——十字花科蛋白（cruciferin）基因的启动子和终止子,构建了无选择标记基因且同时具有正义及反义结构的油酰去饱和酶基因（Fad2）种子特异表达RNAi载体,并通过农杆菌介导的转化,获得了只含有油菜原有基因且Fad2基因表达受抑制的转基因植株。RT—PCR分析结果表明,在油酸含量达到83.9％的转基因植株中未检测到在非转基因植株中普遍存在的Fad2基因转录mRNA——一种典型的RNA干扰现象。通过对植株生长发育状态的观察比较,该高油酸含量转基因株系并未表现出双突变体中由于Fad2基因的失活所引起的植株抗寒能力差、发育迟缓、花蕾死亡、结实率低等不利农艺学性状。     

Overexpression of <Emphasis Type="Italic">AtHDG11</Emphasis> enhanced drought tolerance in wheat (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Triticum aestivum</Emphasis> L.)

Drought is one of the major abiotic stresses restricting the yield of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Breeding wheat varieties with drought tolerance is an effective and durable way to fight against drought. Here we reported introduction of AtHDG11 into wheat via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation and analyzed the morphological and physiological characteristics of T2 generation transgenic lines under drought stress. With drought treatment for 30 days, transgenic plants showed significantly improved drought tolerance. Compared with controls, the transgenic lines displayed lower stomatal density, lower water loss rate, more proline accumulation and increased activities of catalase and superoxide dismutase. Without irrigation after booting stage, the photosynthetic parameters, such as net photosynthesis rate, water use efficiency and efficiency of excitation energy, were increased in transgenic lines, while transpiration rate was decreased. Moreover, the kernel yield of transgenic lines was also improved under drought condition. Taken together, our data demonstrate that AtHDG11 has great potential in genetic improvement of drought tolerance of wheat.     

Ectopic overexpression of AtHDG11 in tall fescue resulted in enhanced tolerance to drought and salt stress

Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) is a cool-season perennial grass, which has been conventionally grown in the temperate area. However, as a major type of cool-season turf grass, its growth has been extended to the sub-tropical climate or even to the transitional climate between the sub-tropical and the tropical, and, in some cases, to heavily salinized lands. The extended growth imposes a serious challenge to its tolerance to the abiotic stress, particularly to drought, salt and high temperature. Here, we report a successful introduction of Arabidopsis AtHDG11 into the tall fescue via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. The ectopic overexpression of AtHDG11 under the control of CaMV 35S promoter with four enhancers resulted in significantly enhanced tolerance to drought and salt stress. No obvious adverse effects on growth and development were observed in the transgenic plants. The enhanced stress tolerance was associated with a more extensive root system, a lower level of malondialdehyde, a nearly normal Na⁺/K⁺ ratio, a higher level of proline and a kinetically accelerated induction of SOD and CAT activities observed in the transgenic plants during drought and/or salt stress, indicating that an enhanced ROS scavenging capability might play a significant role in the acquired tolerance to the abiotic stress. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Ya-Jun Cao and Qiang Wei contributed equally to this work.     

Generation of large numbers of independently transformed fertile perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) plants of forage- and turf-type cultivars

Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is the most important grass species in areas with a temperate climate. Biolistic transfer of a ubiquitin promoter driven nptII expression cassette into mature or immature tissue derived calli of perennial ryegrass followed by paromomycin selection, resulted in the rapid and efficient production of fertile transgenic ryegrass plants. Transformation efficiencies after paromomycin selection in combination with the nptII selectable marker compared favourably with hygromycin selection in combination with the hph selectable marker. In total 83 independent nptII expressing plants were produced. Transformation frequency was highly affected by genotype, explant, selection regime and the duration of the callus induction period. The optimised transformation protocol for mature embryo derived calli of turf-type or forage-type cultivars resulted in an average transformation efficiency of 5.2% or 6.6% respectively. This converts into 1.7 or 2.2 independent transgenic plants per bombardment. Immature inflorescence- and immature embryo-derived calli were also successfully used as target for the gene transfer, resulting in transformation efficiencies of up to 3.7% or 11.42% respectively. Transgenic plants were transferred to soil 12 or 9 weeks after excision of mature and immature embryos or inflorescences respectively. Transgene integration and expression were confirmed by PCR and ELISA or western blot analysis. Southern blot analysis confirmed the independent nature of the transgenic lines. The majority of lines showed the integration of two to six transgene copies, while 21% of the analysed lines had a single copy insert. A short tissue culture period in comparison to recently published reports seems to be beneficial for the production of normal and fertile transgenic ryegrass plants. Consequently we report for the first time molecular evidence for sexual transgene transmission in fertile transgenic perennial ryegrass.     

Selective elimination of perennial ryegrass by activation of a pro-herbicide through engineering <Emphasis Type="Italic">E. coli argE</Emphasis> gene

Perennial ryegrass is widely used for overseeding dormant bermudagrass on golf courses and sports fields in Southeastern United States to provide green color and improved playability. Late spring and summer persistence of perennial ryegrass may decrease the quality of the bermudagrass turf and reduce its winter hardiness. To help solve this problem, we developed a strategy to activate a pro-herbicide within the transgenic perennial ryegrass plants and to cause self elimination of the plants. An E. coli argE gene was introduced into perennial ryegrass by the biolistic method, which resulted in four independently transformed green plants. The mRNA of argE gene was detected in three of the plants by RT-PCR. Perennial ryegrass plants expressing the argE transgene were selectively controlled upon application of a pro-herbicide, N-acetyl-l-phosphinothricin (or N-acetyl-PPT), since the N-acetylornithinase encoded by argE gene is able to convert N-acetyl-PPT to the herbicide phosphinothricin (PPT). The non-transgenic bermudagrass plants were unaffected by the treatment. This approach provides a means to selectively remove a group of transgenic plants without affecting other plants growing with them.     

Transgenic ryegrasses (Lolium spp.) with down-regulation of main pollen allergens

Ryegrass pollen (Lolium species) is a widespread source of air-borne allergens and is a major cause of hayfever and seasonal allergic asthma, which affect approximately 25% of the population in cool temperate climates. The main allergens of ryegrass pollen are the proteins Lol p 1 and Lol p 2. These proteins belong to two major classes of grass pollen allergens to which over 90% of pollen-allergic patients are sensitive. The functional role in planta of these pollen allergen proteins remains largely unknown. Here we describe the generation and analysis of transgenic plants with reduced levels of the main ryegrass pollen allergens, Lol p 1 and Lol p 2 in the most important worldwide cultivated ryegrass species, L. perenne and L. multiflorum. These transgenic plants will allow the study of the functional role in planta of these pollen proteins and the determination of potential for development of hypo-allergenic ryegrass cultivars.     

Overexpression of ubiquitin‐like LpHUB1 gene confers drought tolerance in perennial ryegrass

HUB1, also known as Ubl5, is a member of the subfamily of ubiquitin‐like post‐translational modifiers. HUB1 exerts its role by conjugating with protein targets. The function of this protein has not been studied in plants. A HUB1 gene, LpHUB1, was identified from serial analysis of gene expression data and cloned from perennial ryegrass. The expression of this gene was reported previously to be elevated in pastures during the summer and by drought stress in climate‐controlled growth chambers. Here, pasture‐type and turf‐type transgenic perennial ryegrass plants overexpressing LpHUB1 showed improved drought tolerance, as evidenced by improved turf quality, maintenance of turgor and increased growth. Additional analyses revealed that the transgenic plants generally displayed higher relative water content, leaf water potential, and chlorophyll content and increased photosynthetic rate when subjected to drought stress. These results suggest HUB1 may play an important role in the tolerance of perennial ryegrass to abiotic stresses.     

Isolation and characterization of cold-regulated transcriptional activator <Emphasis Type="Italic">LpCBF3</Emphasis> gene from perennial ryegrass (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Lolium perenne</Emphasis> L.)

In plants, low temperatures can activate the CBF cold response pathway playing a prominent role in cold acclimation by triggering a set of cold-related gene expressions. CBF homologous gene, designated as LpCBF3, from a cold-tolerant perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) accession was identified. It carries the sequences for nuclear localization signal (NLS), AP2 DNA-binding domains and an acidic activation present in most of the plant CBF proteins. Southern analysis indicated the presence of three homologs of LpCBF3 gene in perennial ryegrass genome, and only one amino acid variation in LpCBF3 protein between cold-tolerant and -sensitive perennial ryegrass accessions. In their putative promoter regions, some differential regions were found. Northern blotting and RT-PCR analysis found that LpCBF3 reached the highest expression after 1.5 h of cold treatment (4 degrees C). The COR homologous gene, a downstream gene of CBF, can be expressed in the plant stem of cold-tolerant perennial ryegrass accessions without cold treatment. Without cold treatment, the COR gene cannot be activated in cold-sensitive perennial ryegrass accessions. Cold treatment can prompt expression levels of COR homologous genes in both perennial ryegrass accessions. In transgenic Arabidopsis, the overexpression of LpCBF3 with the 35S promoter resulted in dwarf-like plants, later flowering and greater freezing tolerance.     

Altered fructan accumulation in transgenic Lolium multiflorum plants expressing a Bacillus subtilis sacB gene

Ryegrasses, like many C3 plants, accumulate fructan, which plays an important role in assimilate partitioning, as the major non-structural storage carbohydrate. The present study describes the transformation of a Bacillus subtilis sacB gene, with vacuolar targeting signal sequences and driven by constitutive promoters, into Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) by microprojectile bombardment of embryogenic suspension cells. The expression of the chimeric sacB genes in transgenic ryegrass plants and the concomitant accumulation of low levels of bacterial levan were found to substantially distort the native grass fructan synthesis pattern. High-molecular-weight native fructan was depleted, and the pattern of accumulation of oligosaccharides in the range of 5-35 degree of polymerization was altered. The levan-accumulating sacB-transgenic ryegrass plants had a lower level of total fructose, unchanged sucrose levels, and slightly reduced hexose levels compared to the isogenic controls. Growth of the levan-accumulating sacB-transgenic ryegrass plants slowed down with the onset of the reproductive phase. Flowering plants were stunted and had narrower leaves and poorly developed roots. The association between the manipulated fructan metabolism and the phenotype of the levan-accumulating sacB-transgenic ryegrass plants is discussed.