An alternative approach for gene transfer in trees using wild-type Agrobacterium strains

Micropropagated shoots of three forest tree species, poplar (Populus tremula x P. alba), wild cherry (Prunus avium L.) and walnut (Juglans nigra x J. regia), were inoculated each with six different wild-type Agrobacterium strains. Poplar and wild cherry developed tumors that grew hormone-independently, whereas on walnut, gall formation was weak. On poplar and wild cherry, tumors induced by nopaline strains developed spontaneously shoots that had a normal phenotype and did not carry oncogenic T-DNA. From these observations, we have established a co-inoculation method to transform plants, using poplar as an experimental model. The method is based on inoculation of stem internodes with an Agrobacterium suspension containing both an oncogenic strain that induces shoot differentiation and a disarmed strain that provides the suitable genes in a binary vector. We used the vector pBI121 carrying neo (kanamycin resistance) and uidA (beta-glucuronidase) genes to facilitate early selection and screening. Poplar plants derived from kanamycin-resistant shoots that did not carry oncogenic T-DNA, were shown to contain and to express neo and uidA genes. These results suggest that wild-type Agrobacterium strains that induce shoot formation directly from tumors can be used as a general tool for gene transfer, avoiding difficult regeneration procedures.