Scientists Speed Up Growth of Transgenic Plants from Months to Weeks

Experts from Texas Tech University, the University of Minnesota, and the National Polytechnic Institute (Instituto Politécnico Nacional) have developed a new method to grow engineered plants in weeks instead of months by enhancing the plant's natural ability to regenerate after being wounded or clipped. Using this approach, the researchers successfully created transgenic plants by combining genetic engineering with the plant's own healing process.

The researchers used Agrobacterium, a bacterium known for transferring DNA into plants, to deliver new genes directly to wound sites. When applied to the plants, the modified bacteria triggered the plants' natural regrowth process, producing shoots and seeds. The technique, tested in tomatoes and soybeans, achieved a success rate of 21% to 35% and reduced soybean growth time from three to four months to just three and a half weeks.

The findings show that activating the plant's wound-induced regeneration pathway can make genetic modification faster and simpler. This innovation could help overcome key challenges in crop biotechnology, such as the long turnaround time and technical barriers of tissue-culture-based methods. Researchers believe the technique could accelerate the development of improved crop varieties and make genetic engineering more accessible for agricultural innovation.

For more information, read the study from Molecular Plant.