Transgenic Hairy Root System of Field Mustard Helps Decrease Cadmium Pollution in Soil

An overexpression of the IRT1 gene allowed researchers from the Beijing Jiaotong University in China to enhance the hair root structure of field mustard to cope against Cadmium stress.

The researchers used a combination of genetic engineering and Rizobium rhizogenes-mediated technology to develop the hairy root system of the transgenic field mustard with the IRT1 gene. Previous studies have found that the gene can respond to Cadmium stress and help alleviate metal toxicity through up-regulation.

Subcultures of the hairy roots were found to stably grow within six weeks and the IRT1 was still present within 50 subcultures. Cadmium enrichment experiments were conducted and showed that the hairy roots only turned brown after treating them with 100 uml/L of Cadmium for 14 days. Further tests also showed that the accumulated Cadmium in the roots reached 331.61 ug/g and the enrichment efficiency of transgenic IRT1 hairy roots was 13.8% higher than the wild-type hair roots counterpart.

The study suggests that IRT1 plays an important role in the field mustard's adaptability to Cadmium stress found in the soil. The hairy roots system developed from this study may be useful in the field of phytoremediation and can be used as a tool for detecting and evaluating Cadmium pollution in the environment. Lastly, the transgenic hairy root system provides other researchers a user-friendly platform to further investigate the role of the IRT1.

Read the full results in the International Journal of Phytoremediation to learn more.