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. 2017 Oct 20:15:e0186.
doi: 10.1199/tab.0186. eCollection 2017.

Agrobacterium-mediated plant transformation: biology and applications

Hau-Hsuan Hwang  1 , Manda Yu  2 , Erh-Min Lai  2
Affiliations

Agrobacterium-mediated plant transformation: biology and applications

Hau-Hsuan Hwang et al. Arabidopsis Book. .

Abstract

Plant genetic transformation heavily relies on the bacterial pathogen Agrobacterium tumefaciens as a powerful tool to deliver genes of interest into a host plant. Inside the plant nucleus, the transferred DNA is capable of integrating into the plant genome for inheritance to the next generation (i.e. stable transformation). Alternatively, the foreign DNA can transiently remain in the nucleus without integrating into the genome but still be transcribed to produce desirable gene products (i.e. transient transformation). From the discovery of A. tumefaciens to its wide application in plant biotechnology, numerous aspects of the interaction between A. tumefaciens and plants have been elucidated. This article aims to provide a comprehensive review of the biology and the applications of Agrobacterium-mediated plant transformation, which may be useful for both microbiologists and plant biologists who desire a better understanding of plant transformation, protein expression in plants, and plant-microbe interaction.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Major steps of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated plant transformation process. (1) Attachment of A. tumefaciens to the plant cells. (2) Sensing plant signals by A. tumefaciens and regulation of virulence genes in bacteria following transduction of the sensed signals. (3) Generation and transport of T-DNA and virulence proteins from the bacterial cells into plant cells. (4) Nuclear import of T-DNA and effector proteins in the plant cells. (5) T-DNA integration and expression in the plant genome.
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