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Reversible methylation and inactivation of marker genes in sequentially transformed tobacco plants
Author(s) -
Matzke M. A.,
Primig M.,
Trnovsky J.,
Matzke A. J. M.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
the embo journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 7.484
H-Index - 392
eISSN - 1460-2075
pISSN - 0261-4189
DOI - 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1989.tb03421.x
Subject(s) - biology , gene , genetics , dna methylation , promoter , dna , methylation , microbiology and biotechnology , transformation (genetics) , octopine , gene expression , agrobacterium
Doubly transformed tobacco plants were obtained following sequential transformation steps using two T‐DNAs encoding different selection and screening markers: T‐DNA‐I encoded kanamycin resistance and nopaline synthase; T‐DNA‐II encoded hygromycin resistance and octopine synthase. A genetic analysis of the inheritance of the selection and screening marker genes in progeny of the doubly tranformed plants revealed that the expression of T‐DNA‐I genes was often suppressed. This suppression could be correlated with methylation in the promoters of these genes. Surprisingly, both the methylation and inactivation of T‐DNA‐I genes occurred only in plants containing both T‐DNAs: when self‐fertilization or backcrossing produced progeny containing only T‐DNA‐I, expression of the genes on this T‐DNA was restored and the corresponding promoters were partially or completely demethylated. These results indicated that the presence of one T‐DNA could affect the state of methylation and expression of genes on a second, unlinked T‐DNA in the same genome.