AGROBACTERIUM-MEDIATED TRANSFORMATION OF COTTON (GOSSYPIUM HIRSUTUM L.) USING DMO GENE FOR ENHANCED TOLERANCE AGAINST DICAMBA PESTICIDE

Abstract

The agrobacterium based transformation of herbicide-resistant crops has modernized weed management in crops by producing cost-effective and ecosystem friendly transgenic plants. Cotton is one of the major crops which are grown worldwide due to its great economic value in textile industries.  Dicamba is a commonly used herbicide in broadleaf plants to kill a wide range of weeds in many dicotyledonous crop fields since the 20th century. In this study, Eagle 2 cotton variety was transformed with the DMO gene which is responsible for the synthesis of the Dicamba monooxygenase enzyme that exhibits tolerance against the Dicamba herbicide. This entire study was conducted at Four Brothers Genetics Lab, Lahore. Transformed cultures of Agrobacterium Tumefaciens with the DMO gene were acquired. Cotton embryos were isolated and co-cultivated with transformed Agrobacterium cultures under sterile conditions. Transformed embryos were grown on an artificial growth medium and acclimatized under favorable conditions. Healthy and stable plants were shifted infield where they were grown into a mature plant. Leaf samples of these plants were collected and DNA was successfully isolated by the CTAB method. Transformed plants were confirmed by Polymerase chain reaction and gel electrophoresis. Variations in different traits among transformed cotton plants were found which indicated that the transgenic plant 4 showed higher plant height, monopodial and sympodial branches, leaf length, leaf width, number of bolls, and bolls weight. The better performance of plant 4 indicated that the yield potential of the transgenic plant was improved as compared with other transgenic cotton plants.