An Agrobacterium-transformed cell culture from the monocot Asparagus officinalis

Cultured stem fragments from the monocotyledonous plant Asparagus officinalis infected by the oncogenic bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens developed tumorous proliferations. This tissue was propagated in vitro on hormone-free culture medium. The T-DNA-encoded markers nopaline and agrocinopine were unambiguously detected in these tissues. The data demonstrate that stable T-DNA transfer as well as expression of T-DNA genes is possible in at least some monocotyledonous plants. This opens new possibilities for plant genetic engineering using the Ti plasmid as a gene vector.