Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer to monocots and dicots

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Abstract
The interaction of the soil bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens with plants constitutes a unique kind of genetic flux: the bacterium transfers the T-DNA part of its Ti plasmid to plant cells, where it is integrated into the genome. Possible transfer intermediates, isolated from bacteria and from plants early after transfer, are described. Agroinfection, Agrobacterium-mediated delivery of plant viral genomes, is employed to monitor early events in T-DNA transfer in dicot plants. Graminaceous monocots, so far excluded from Agrobacterium's host range because of lack of tumor formation, have been shown to be agroinfectable. This newly discovered interaction between grasses and the pathogen is described in terms of the efficiency of gene transfer as compared with dicot hosts, the involvement of the bacterium's virulence genes, the susceptibility of various developmental stages of the host, the implications for biotechnology, and the evolutionary aspects of this host–parasite relationship.Key words: T-DNA, agroinfection, maize streak virus, plant transformation, Zea mays.

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