Transfer DNA - T-DNA Transformation

T-DNA Transformation

Agrobacterium-mediated T-DNA transfer is widely used as a tool in biotechnology. In genetic engineering, the tumor-promoting and opine-synthesis genes are removed from the T-DNA and replaced with a gene of interest and/or a selection marker, this is required so that it is possible to establish which plants have been successfully transformed. Examples of selection markers include neomycin phosphotransferase, hygromycin B phosphotransferase (which both phosphorylate antibiotics) and phosphinothricin acetyltransferase (which acetylates and deactivates phosphinothricin, a potent inhibitor of glutamine synthetase). Agrobacterium is then used as a vector to transfer the engineered T-DNA into the plant cells where it integrates into the plant genome. This method can be used to generate transgenic plants carrying a foreign gene.