Transgenic tobacco plants regenerated from leaf disks can be periclinal chimeras
T. Schmülling
1*
and Jeff Schell
2
Plant Mol Biol 21: 705-708.
1
Universität Tübingen, Lehrstuhl fⁿr Allgemeine Genetik, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, D-7400 Tübingen, Germany (
*
author for correspondence)
2
Max-Planck-Institut fⁿr Züchtungsforschung, Carl-von-Linné-Weg 10, D-50829 Köln, Germany
Abstract
Amongst
rolC
transgenic tobacco plants regenerated from leaf disks 6.5 % are periclinal chimeras, i.e. plants with genetically different cell populations in different cell layers. The expression of the
rolC
gene of
Agrobacterium rhizogenes
causes a reduction in pigment content in leaves. The chimeric composition of the regenerated plants becomes thus apparent as light green leaf tissue in the transgenic region, tissue flanked by dark green wild type sectors. Southern and northern blot analysis confirmed the chimeric nature of such plants. Cell layer invasion frequency in reproductive tissue was 2 x 10
-3
, as estimated from the investigation of selfed progeny of chimeric plants on selective media. The results show (1) that tobacco plants regenerated from leaf disks and grown on selective media have not necessarily the same clonal origin and (2) that they can give rise to non transgenic offspring. The chimeric plants provide insight on the effect of
rolC
gene expression on microsporogenesis.
