Mechanism of cellulose synthesis in Agrobacterium tumefaciens.

Extracts of Agrobacterium tumefaciens incorporated UDP-[14C]glucose into cellulose. When the extracts were fractionated into membrane and soluble components, neither fraction was able to synthesize cellulose. A combination of the membrane and soluble fractions restored the activity found in the original extracts. Extracts of cellulose-minus mutants showed no significant incorporation of UDP-glucose into cellulose. When mixtures of the extracts were made, the mutants were found to fall into two groups: extracts of mutants from the first group could be combined with extracts of the second group to obtain cellulose synthesis. No synthesis was observed when extracts of mutants from the same group were mixed. The groups of mutants corresponded to the two operons identified in sequencing the cel genes (A. G. Matthysse, S. White, and R. Lightfoot. J. Bacteriol. 177:1069-1075, 1995). Extracts of mutants were fractionated into membrane and soluble components, and the fractions were mixed and assayed for the ability to synthesize cellulose. When the membrane fraction from mutants in the celDE operon was combined with the soluble fraction from mutants in the celABC operon, incorporation of UDP-glucose into cellulose was observed. In order to determine whether lipid-linked intermediates were involved in cellulose synthesis, permeablized cells were examined for the incorporation of UDP-[14C]glucose into material extractable with organic solvents. No radioactivity was found in the chloroform-methanol extract of mutants in the celDE operon, but radioactive material was recovered in the chloroform-methanol extract of mutants in the celABC operon. The saccharide component of these compounds was released after mild acid hydrolysis and was found to be mainly glucose for the celA insertion mutant and a mixture of cellobiose, cellotriose, and cellotetrose for the celB and celC insertion mutants. The radioactive compound extracted with chloroform-methanol form the celC insertion mutant was incorporated into cellulose by membrane preparations from celE mutants, which suggests that this compound is a lipid-linked intermediate in cellulose synthesis.     

Chloroplast transformation by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

A chimeric gene consisting of the promoter region of the nopaline synthase gene (Pnos) fused to the coding sequence of the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene (cat gene) of Tn9 was introduced by co-cultivation in tobacco protoplasts followed by selection with 10 μg/ml chloramphenicol. The chloramphenicol-resistant plants derived from these selected calli were unable to transmit the Cm^R phenotype through pollen. A typically maternal inheritance pattern was observed. Southern blot analysis showed that the chimeric Pnos-cat gene was present in the chloroplasts of these resistant plants. Furthermore, the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase activity was shown to be associated with the chloroplast fraction. These observations are the first proof that the Agrobacterium Ti-plasmid vectors can be used to introduce genes in chloroplasts.     

Transformation of azuki bean by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Stable transformation and regeneration was developed for a grain legume, azuki bean (Vigna angularis Willd. Ohwi & Ohashi). Two constructs containing the neomycin phosphotransferase II gene (nptII) and either the -glucuronidase (GUS) gene or the modified green fluorescent protein [sGFP(S65T)] gene were introduced independently via Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. After 2 days of co-cultivation on MS medium supplemented with 100 M acetosyringone and 10 mg l^–1 6-benzyladenine, seedling epicotyl explants were placed on regeneration medium containing 100 mg l^–1 kanamycin. Adventitious shoots developing from explant calli were excised onto rooting medium containing 100 mg l^–1 kanamycin. Rooted shoots were excised and repeatedly selected on the same medium containing kanamycin. Surviving plants were transferred to soil and grown in a green house to produce viable seeds. This process took 5 to 7 months after co-cultivation. Molecular analysis confirmed the stable integration and expression of foreign genes.     

Transformation of Corynespora cassiicola by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

The fungus causing target spot disease, Corynespora cassiicola (Berk. & M. A. Curtis) C. T. Wei, poses an increasing threat to watermelon (Citrullus lanatus), muskmelon (Cucumis melo), and cucumber (Cucumis sativus); the most economically important cucurbit crops grown in China. An understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenicity of C. cassiicola is essential for the development of new strategies to control this disease-causing fungus. Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation (ATMT) might be useful to obtain transformants of C. cassiicola, for the ultimate identification of genes involved in pathogenicity. In the present work, we established and optimized an ATMT protocol using A. tumefaciens strain AGL-1 carrying the vector pATMT1 for C. cassiicola. Efficiency of ATMT was 102–148 transformants per 10⁶ conidia and successive subculturing of transformants on non-selective and selective media demonstrated that the integrated transfer (T)-DNA was stably inherited in C. cassiicola transformants. The integration of the hygromycin B phosphotransferase (hph) gene into C. cassiicola was validated by PCR and Southern blot analyses, which revealed that nearly 90 % of the transformants contained single-copy T-DNA. The transformants with altered phenotypes were characterized. Three of these transformants completely lost pathogenicity and other three showed strongly impaired pathogenicity relative to the Cc-GX strain on muskmelon leaves. These results strongly suggest that ATMT may be used as a molecular tool for identifying genes relevant to pathogenicity in the fungus C. cassiicola, an emerging threat to several agronomically important plants in China.     

Efficient transformation of Agrobacterium tumefaciens by electroporation

High-voltage electroporation was used to transform Agrobacterium tumefaciens strains A136 and A348, reaching the efficiency of 1-3 x 10(8) transformants/micrograms DNA. Transformation frequency was dependent on the electrical field strength and the pulse length. No significant reduction in transformation efficiency was observed when the transforming DNA contained sites sensitive to endonuclease AtuCI of A. tumefaciens.     

Transformation of rice mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Agrobacterium tumefaciens has been routinely utilized in gene transfer to dicotyledonous plants, but monocotyledonous plants including important cereals were thought to be recalcitrant to this technology as they were outside the host range of crown gall. Various challenges to infect monocotyledons including rice with Agrobacterium had been made in many laboratories, but the results were not conclusive until recently. Efficient transformation protocols mediated by Agrobacterium were reported for rice in 1994 and 1996. A key point in the protocols was the fact that tissues consisting of actively dividing, embryonic cells, such as immature embryos and calli induced from scutella, were co-cultivated with Agrobacterium in the presence of acetosyringonc, which is a potent inducer of the virulence genes. It is now clear that Agrobacterium is capable of transferring DNA to monocotyledons if tissues containing competent cells are infected. The studies of transformation of rice suggested that numerous factors including genotype of plants, types and ages of tissues inoculated, kind of vectors, strains of Agrobacterium, selection marker genes and selective agents, and various conditions of tissue culture, are of critical importance. Advantages of the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation in rice, like on dicotyledons, include the transfer of pieces of DNA with defined ends with minimal rearrangements, the transfer of relatively large segments of DNA, the integration of small numbers of copies of genes into plant chromosomes, and high quality and fertility of transgenic plants. Delivery of foreign DNA to rice plants via A. tumefaciens is a routine technique in a growing number of laboratories. This technique will allow the genetic improvement of diverse varieties of rice, as well as studies of many aspects of the molecular biology of rice.     

Polygalacturonase Production by Agrobacterium tumefaciens Biovar 3

Agrobacterium tumefaciens biovar 3 causes both crown gall and root decay of grape. Twenty-two Agrobacterium strains representing biovars 1, 2, and 3 were analyzed for tumorigenicity, presence of a Ti plasmid, ability to cause grape seedling root decay, and pectolytic activity. All of the biovar 3 strains, regardless of their tumorigenicity or presence of a Ti plasmid, caused root decay and were pectolytic, whereas none of the biovar 1 and 2 strains had these capacities. Isoelectrically focused gels that were activity stained with differentially buffered polygalacturonate-agarose overlays revealed that all of the biovar 3 strains produced a single polygalacturonase with a pH optimum of 4.5 and pIs ranging from 4.8 to 5.2. The enzyme was largely extracellular and was produced constitutively in basal medium supplemented with a variety of carbon sources including polygalacturonic acid. Lesions on grape seedling roots inoculated with A. tumefaciens biovar 3 strain CG49 yielded polygalacturonase activity with a pI similar to that of the enzyme produced by the bacterium in culture. These observations support the hypothesis that the polygalacturonase produced by A. tumefaciens biovar 3 has a role in grape root decay.     

根癌农杆菌介导真菌遗传转化的研究进展

根癌农杆菌介导的真菌遗传转化是近年来发展的一种新方法 ,与其它方法相比 ,该方法具有操作简便、转化效率高和易得到稳定转化子等特点。目前 ,在根癌农杆菌介导下已实现了多个属种真菌的遗传转化 ,显示出良好的应用前景。综述了根癌农杆菌介导真菌遗传转化的转化机理和T DNA在真菌细胞中的存在方式等方面的研究结果 ,并展望这一方法的应用前景。     

Transfection in Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Intact cells of Agrobacterium tumefaciens were examined for ability to take up biologically active LR-4 phage deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from the surrounding medium. DNA incorporation as measured by subsequent plaque formation (transfection) failed to occur when the bacteria were grown in defined minimal salts media, and was restricted to a 4-hr period in the early log phase of growth in enriched media. In the latter case, maximal transfection frequencies were obtained after a 25- to 30-min incubation with 22.5 mug of phage DNA/ml. Higher DNA concentrations or longer incubation times were inhibitory. Transfection was completely inhibited by deoxyribonuclease but not by ribonuclease, trypsin, or phage-specific antisera.     

Transposon-Induced Catalase-Deficient Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Agrobacterium tumefaciens MKR, a nonpathogenic strain, has three catalase isozymes and one superoxide dismutase but no detectable peroxidase activity. A large number (8400) of transconjugants were obtained with pSUP1011::Tn5 suicide vector. The transposition frequencies were found to be greater in biparental mating than in triparental mating with helper plasmid. Mutants MLA31, MLA32, MLA41, and MLA41(a), generated by transposon mutagenesis, all lacked one of the catalase isozymes. Mutants were more susceptible to cell death than the wild type upon direct exposure to 10.0 mmol L⁻¹ H₂O₂. The specific activity of the enzyme catalase was found to be higher in nitrogen-rich growth medium than carbon-rich growth medium. Received: 28 January 1997 / Accepted: 25 February 1997     

Kinetic model of disaccharide oxidation by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Disaccharides were microbaially transformed to their corresponding 3-keto-derivatives by resting cells of Agrobacterium tumefaciens NCPPB 396. The kinetics and yield of this highly specific oxidation depend on several factors. The oxygen concentration especially has a major influence on the production of 3-keto-derivatives and was investigated kinetically with respect to low stationary oxygen concentrations in solution. Experiments showed unconventional results that conflicted with normal Michaelis-Menten kinetics. A kinetic model was developed and the kinetic constants were calculated. The model and experimental data for sucrose, maltose, iso-maltulose (palatinose), and leucrose are in good agreement with each other. Initial reaction rates with different sugars using constant oxygen concentrations resulted in a Michaelis-Mentent type function. The complete kinetics, including the effect of disaccharide and oxygen concentrations, are presented. (c) 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Genetic transformation of Ginkgo biloba by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

A reproducible protocol has been established for the transformation of Ginkgo biloba by Agrobacterium tumefaciens . Embryos were co-cultivated with Agrobacterium tumefaciens GV3101 (pGV2260) carrying the binary vector pTHW136, which contained the gus reporter gene and the nptII selectable gene, encoding the enzymes β -glucuronidase (GUS) and neomycin phophotransferase II, respectively. Transient GUS activity has been used to screen the effects of different factors on the transfer of DNA into embryos (age of embryos, infection method, composition of co-cultivation medium). Then, experimental conditions have been defined to obtain transgenic kanamycin-resistant G. biloba calluses expressing GUS activity. The highest rate of transformation (45%) was reached using 1.5-month-old embryos co-cultivated on a medium lacking mineral elements. The integration of gus and nptII genes in calluses was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction analysis and Southern blot analysis.     

根癌农杆菌介导的大豆遗传转化

农杆菌介导法是大豆遗传转化的重要方法之一 ,许多实验室应用该方法得到了转基因大豆 ,但目前使用该方法进行转化的效率还比较低 ,尚需深入研究。农杆菌菌株、大豆基因型、组织培养条件、T-DNA的转移效率和转化后的筛选模式都会影响大豆转化的效率。概述了近年来根癌农杆菌介导的大豆遗传转化的一些重要成果 ,以及转化过程中大豆的易感性与农杆菌的转化能力、乙酰丁香酮促进vir基因活化、转化的受体系统和巯基混合物减轻受体材料的褐化、提高T DNA的转移效率等几个重要因素的研究进展 ,并介绍了转化中常用的几个筛选标记基因 (nptⅡ、hpt、bar基因和突变的ahas基因 )及通过共转化法去除标记基因的方法 ,同时对今后研究的重点进行了讨论.     

Transformation of Metarhizium anisopliae mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

A simple, highly efficient, and reliable Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation method was developed for the insect pathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae. Expression of the green fluorescent protein gene, egfp, and the benomyl resistance gene, benA3, were used as markers in transformed M. anisopliae. Transformation efficiencies were dependent on the strain of A. tumefaciens used. With strain AGL-1, 17.0 +/- 1.4 transformants per plate could be obtained using conidial concentrations of 10(6) conidia/mL and a 2 day co-cultivation in the presence of 200 micromol/L acetosyringone. On the other hand, transformations using strain LBA4404 were unsuccessful. Ten transformants were tested by Southern analysis and found to contain a single copy T-DNA. Twenty transformants were subcultured for five generations on nonselective media, and 95% of the transformants were mitotically stable. Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of M. anisopliae can serve as a useful tool to investigate genes involved in insect pathogenicity.     

农杆菌介导的甜瓜蔓枯病菌遗传转化体系的建立

甜瓜蔓枯病是当前危害瓜类的主要病害,严重影响甜瓜的产量和品质,但是蔓枯病菌Didymella bryoniae病原学研究还非常落后,关于该菌功能基因的研究还未见报道。本研究以携带潮霉素B磷酸转移酶基因(hph)的pBIG2RHPH2作为转化载体,根癌农杆菌C58C1作为转化介体,转化甜瓜蔓枯病菌的强致病菌株DB11。研究发现,甜瓜蔓枯病菌的最优转化体系为:甜瓜蔓枯病菌的分生孢子悬浮液浓度为1×106个孢子/mL,农杆菌悬浮液OD600为0.15,共培养时间48h,诱导培养基中添加200μg/mL乙酰丁香酮,选择培养基添加100μg/mL潮霉素B、200μg/mL头孢噻肟钠、200μg/mL氨苄青霉素和200μg/mL四环素。1×105个蔓枯病菌分生孢子可以产生45个左右的转化子,随机挑取3个转化子进行PCR和RT-PCR检测发现,在不含潮霉素B的PDA培养基平板上转化子连续培养5代后,hph基因仍能稳定存在和转录,Southern blotting检测发现,T-DNA都是单拷贝插入3个转化子的染色体内。本研究建立的甜瓜蔓枯病菌的转化体系将为该病菌的功能基因研究和寄主与病原菌的互作研究提供重要技术支撑。     

Transport of nonmetabolizable opines by Agrobacterium tumefaciens.

We have examined the uptake of [14C]octopine and [14C]nopaline by Agrobacterium tumefaciens strains containing the C58 chromosomal background in medium suitable for the induction of vir genes. All strains tested could transport both of these opines, regardless of the presence or type of Ti plasmid (octopine or nopaline) present in the bacterium. The transport of these opines required active cellular metabolism. Nonradioactive octopine, nopaline, and arginine competed effectively with [14C]octopine and [14C]nopaline for transport into A. tumefaciens A136, suggesting that the transport of these opines occurs via an arginine transport pathway not encoded by the Ti plasmid.     

Genetic transformation of Robinia pseudoacacia by Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Transgenic Robinia pseudoacacia plants were obtained by Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated gene transfer. Agrobacterium strain LBA4404 harbouring a binary vector that contained the chimeric neomycin phosphotransferase II (NPTII) and beta-glucuronidase (GUS) genes was co-cultivated with hypocotyl segments of in vitro raised seedlings of Robinia. Parameters important for high efficiency regeneration and transformation rates included type of explant, pre-conditioning of explants and appropriate length of co-cultivation period with Agrobacterium. A transformation frequency 16.67% was obtained by 48 hr of pre-conditioning followed by 48 hr of co-cultivation. Transformed tissue was selected by the ability to grow on kanamycin containing medium. Successful regeneration was followed after histochemical GUS assay for the detection of transgenic tissue. This transformation procedure has the potential to expand the range of genetic variation in Robinia.