Nature’s own genetic engineer

The “sharing” of DNA among living forms is well documented as a natural phenomenon. For thousands of years, genes have moved from one organism to another. For example, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, a soil bacterium known as ‘nature’s own genetic engineer’, has the natural ability to genetically engineer plants.

It causes crown gall disease of a wide range of broad-leaved plants, such as apple, pear, peach, cherry, almond, raspberry and roses. The disease gains its name from the large tumor-like swellings (galls) that typically occur at the crown of the plant, just above soil level. Basically, the bacterium transfers part of its DNA to the plant, and this DNA integrates into the plant’s genome, causing the production of tumors and associated changes in plant metabolism.