Enemies at peace: Recent progress in Agrobacterium-mediated cereal transformation
Shaoshuai Liu,
Ke Wang,
Shuaifeng Geng,
Moammar Hossain,
Xingguo Ye,
Aili Li,
Long Mao,
Karl-Heinz Kogel
Affiliations
Shaoshuai Liu
State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Ke Wang
State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Shuaifeng Geng
State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Moammar Hossain
Institute of Phytopathology, Centre for BioSystems, Land Use and Nutrition, Justus Liebig University, Heinrich Buff-Ring 26-32, D-35392, Giessen, Germany
Xingguo Ye
State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Aili Li
State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Long Mao
State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; Corresponding authors.
Karl-Heinz Kogel
Institute of Phytopathology, Centre for BioSystems, Land Use and Nutrition, Justus Liebig University, Heinrich Buff-Ring 26-32, D-35392, Giessen, Germany; Corresponding authors.
Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated plant transformation is a versatile tool for plant genetic engineering following its discovery nearly half a century ago. Numerous modifications were made in its application to increase efficiency, especially in the recalcitrant major cereals plants. Recent breakthroughs in transformation efficiency continue its role as a mainstream technique in CRISPR/Cas-based genome editing and gene stacking. These modifications led to higher transformation frequency and lower but more stable transgene copies with the capability to revolutionize modern agriculture. In this review, we provide a brief overview of the history of Agrobacterium-mediated plant transformation and focus on the most recent progress to improve the system in both the Agrobacterium and the host recipient. A promising future for transformation in biotechnology and agriculture is predicted.
