This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (9) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Orzaez, D. Articles by Granell, A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Orzaez, D. Articles by Granell, A. Agricola Articles by Orzaez, D. Articles by Granell, A. Related Collections Vector Systems for Plant Research and Biotechnology

BREAKTHROUGH TECHNOLOGIES

Agroinjection of Tomato Fruits. A Tool for Rapid Functional Analysis of Transgenes Directly in Fruit¹

Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Plantas, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, Spain (D.O., S.M., A.G.); and Laboratory of Molecular Recognition and Antibody Technology, Wageningen University, 6700 ES Wageningen, The Netherlands (W.H.W.)

Transient expression of foreign genes in plant tissues is a valuable tool for plant biotechnology. To shorten the time for gene functional analysis in fruits, we developed a transient methodology that could be applied to tomato (Solanum lycopersicum cv Micro Tom) fruits. It was found that injection of Agrobacterium cultures through the fruit stylar apex resulted in complete fruit infiltration. This infiltration method, named fruit agroinjection, rendered high levels of 35S Cauliflower mosaic virus-driven -glucuronidase and yellow fluorescence protein transient expression in the fruit, with higher expression levels around the placenta and moderate levels in the pericarp. Usefulness of fruit agroinjection was assayed in three case studies: (1) the heat shock regulation of an Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) promoter, (2) the production of recombinant IgA antibodies as an example of molecular farming, and (3) the virus-induced gene silencing of the carotene biosynthesis pathway. In all three instances, this technology was shown to be efficient as a tool for fast transgene expression in fruits.

The author responsible for distribution of materials integral to the findings presented in this article in accordance with the policy described in the Instructions for Authors (www.plantphysiol.org) is: Antonio Granell (agranell{at}ibmcp.upv.es).

www.plantphysiol.org/cgi/doi/10.1104/pp.105.068221.

^* Corresponding author; e-mail agranell{at}ibmcp.upv.es; fax 34–96–3877859.

Received July 11, 2005; returned for revision October 11, 2005; accepted October 25, 2005.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C.-Z. Jiang, F. Lu, W. Imsabai, S. Meir, and M. S. Reid Silencing polygalacturonase expression inhibits tomato petiole abscission J. Exp. Bot., March 2, 2008; (2008) ern023v1. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. Goytia, L. Fernandez-Calvino, B. Martinez-Garcia, D. Lopez-Abella, and J. J. Lopez-Moya Production of plum pox virus HC-Pro functionally active for aphid transmission in a transient-expression system. J. Gen. Virol., November 1, 2006; 87(Pt 11): 3413 - 3423. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]