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ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #122395
Title: EVALUATION OF THE BIOLISTIC TRANSFORMATION METHOD FOR COMMERCIALLY IMPORTANT SUGARBEET BREEDING LINES

Author
item IVIC, SNEZANA - 1275-25-00
item Smigocki, Anna

Submitted to: American Society of Sugarbeet Technologists
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/30/2001
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Plant breeders have had limited success improving the sugar content in sugarbeet due to an inverse relationship between sugar yield and the size of the sugar-accumulating taproot. Therefore, further improvement of sugar yields will require introduction of new genes into sugarbeet using novel concepts such as genetic engineering. Genetic improvement of sugarbeet using biotechnology has progressed slowly since currently available methods are not readily reproducible. A transformaiton method was developed in this laboratory with a sugarbeet variety that is not suitable as a breeding line with commercially important varieties. Therefore, we tested the production of plant tissues from several commercially important sugarbeet breeding lines for use with our transformation method. One variety proved superior in its ability to produce plant material used in our transformation method. This finding will be useful to scientists employing genetic engineering approaches for improving sugar yields in commercially important sugarbeet.

Technical Abstract: Conventional breeding of sugarbeet is difficult since it is a biennial and a highly heterozygous plant. Genetic improvement of sugarbeet using biotechnology has progressed slowly since currently available methods of transformation (D'Halluin et al., 1992; Hall et al., 1996; Krens et al., 1996; Lindsey et Galloi, 1990) are not readily reproducible or cultivar independent. A biolistic sugarbeet transformation method (Snyder et al. 1999) was developed in this laboratory using embryogenic hypocotyl callus of a tissue culture clone REL-1. This clone has high regeneration potential in vitro; however, it is not suitable as a breeding line for rapid genetic improvement of commercially important sugarbeet lines. Therefore, we tested the feasibility of using the biolistic transformation method with several commercially important sugarbeet breeding lines.