Biotech Updates

Alternative Selection Systems for Plant Transformation

June 8, 2007

Alternative selection systems for plant transformation are especially valuable in clonal crops, such as potato (Solanum tuberosum), to pyramid transgenes into the same cultivar by successive transformation events. Because of the concern about escape of antibiotic- or herbicide-resistant transgenes from transgenic crops, selectable marker genes from plant origin would be valuable alternative choice for plant transformation.

Syamsidah Rahmawati from Research Centre for Biotechnology, Indonesia, has conducted research on alternative selectable gene for plant transformation, and she found four alternative selection systems that are potentially safe and effective in plant transformation system. Two systems, phosphomannose isomerase (PMI) and xylose isomerase (Xyla), used mannose and xylose, respectively, as selective agents. Furthermore, Xyla has been widely used in the starch industry and in food processing.

To download the full article of “Alternative Selectable Marker Gene for Plant Transformation”, visit http://www.indobiogen.or.id/terbitan/pdf/agrobio_6_1_26-33.pdf.