Agrobacterium-mediated T-DNA insertion for mutagenesis assessed by the production of hairy roots emitting melon fruit odours

摘要

This study examined whether Agrobacterium-mediated T-DNA insertion was useful for obtaining mutant melon plants. For this purpose, we used Agrobacterium rhizogenes because of its frequent hairy root production when inoculated into plants and the easydetection of fruit odours produced by the hairy roots. Of the 6534 hairy root clones obtained, five clones were mutants emitting fruit odours, and the KMH-4196 clone produced the strongest melon fruit odours. These odours were due to the production of atleast four compounds that were not detected in non-aromatic hairy root clones: (Zj-3-hexenol, (Ej-2-hexenal, 1-nonanoland (Z)-6-nonenol. (Zj-6-nonenol was the most important and was produced stably during successive subculture for 3 years. Molecular analyses indicated that a single copy of T-DNA from the inoculated bacteria was integrated into a chromosome in the clone, suggesting that Agrobacterium-mediated T-DNA insertion is an effective mutagenesis method in higher plants.