• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.183-193
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• 2015

Several transgenic marine medaka Oryzias dancena strains harboring a green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter construct regulated by an endogenous ${\beta}$-actin promoter were established and their expression characteristics in relation to transgene copy numbers were examined in 21 transgene genotypes. Most of the transgenic strains displayed transgene insertion patterns typical of microinjection-mediated introduction of foreign DNA into fish embryos, characterized by the random integration of multiple transgene copies (ranging from 1 - 282 copies per cell), often accompanied by the formation of concatemer(s), as assessed by genomic Southern blot hybridization analysis and qPCR. Transgenic strains showed ubiquitous and continued temporal and spatial expression patterns of the transgenic GFP during most of their life cycle, from the embryonic stage to adulthood, enabling assessment of the expression pattern of the endogenous ${\beta}$-actin gene. However, a comparative evaluation of transgene copy numbers and expression levels showed that copy number-dependent expression, the stability of the ubiquitous distribution and expression efficiency per transgene copy varied among the transgenic strains. Fluorescence expression levels were positively correlated with absolute transgene copy numbers, whereas the expression efficiency per transgene copy was inversely related to the number of transgene integrant copies. Data from this study will guide the selection of potentially desirable transgenic strains with ubiquitous expression of a fluorescent transgene, not only in this marine medaka species but also in other related model fish species.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.73-80
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• 2015

To examine the interrelationship between transgenic insertion patterns and transgene expression profiles in established transgenic fish lines, four stable transgenic marine medaka Oryzias dancena germlines harboring ${\beta}$-actin regulator-driven RFP reporter constructs were selected. The established transgenic strains were characterized with regard to their transgenic genotypes (insertion pattern, concatemer formation, and transgene copy number based on genomic Southern blot hybridization and qPCR assay) and expression characteristics at the mRNA (qRT-PCR), protein (western blot), and phenotypic (fluorescent appearance) levels. From comparative examinations, it was found that transgenic expression at both the transcription and translation levels could be significantly downregulated in transgenic strains, potentially through methylation-mediated transgene silencing that was particularly associated with the formation of a long tail-to-head tandem concatemer in the chromosomal integration site(s). When this occurred, an inverse relationship between the transgene copy number and fluorescence intensity was observed in the resultant transgenic fish. However, with the other transgenic genotype, transgenic individuals with an identical Southern blot hybridization pattern, containing a tandem concatemer(s), had very different expression levels (highly robust vs. low expression strengths), which was possibly related to the differential epigenetic modifications and/or degrees of methylation. The concatemer-dependent downregulation of transgene activity could be induced in transgenic fish, but the overall pattern was strain-specific. Our data suggest that neither a low (or single) transgene copy number nor tandem transgene concatemerization is indicative of strong or silenced transgene expression in transgenic fish carrying a ubiquitous transgene. Hence, a sufficient number of transgenic lineages, with different genotypes, should be considered to ensure the establishment of the best-performance transgenic line(s) for practical applications.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.39-46
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• 2001

To examine the effect of copy number-dependent transgenic genotype on the expression of foreign gene, stable hemizygous and homozygous transgenic breeding line was established using artificial parthenogenesis. For this purpose, induced diploid gynogenetic transgenesis was optimized in mud loach (Misgurnus mizolepis) using UV-irradiated cyprinid loach (M. anguillicaudatus) sperm and thermal shocks. Optimum UV range for inactivation of cyprinid loach sperm was between 3,150 to $4,050\;ergs/mm^2$ The UV-irradiated sperm were inseminated into eggs from recessive color strain (yellow) or heterozygous transgenic mud loach containing CAT gene. Cold shock at $2^{\circ}C$ for 60 min, 5 min post fertilization successfully restored the diploidy of eggs inseminated with UV-irradiated sperm. Restoration to diploidy was confirmed by flow cytometry and gynogenetic status was verified by examining maternal exclusive inheritance of multi-locus DNA fingerprints, body color and transgenic marker. Putative isogenic transgenic fish clearly showed homozygous status at trans gene locus based on Southern blot hybridization and progeny testing. Further, such homozygous gynogenetic diploids revealed the increased levels of transgene expression, when compared to those of heterozygous (hemizygous) transgenic fish.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.16-22
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• 2005

A cDNA encoding ${\gamma}-tocopherol$ methyltransferase (${\gamma}-TMT$) from Arabidopsis thaliana was overexpressed in lettuce (Latuca sativa L.) to improve the tocopherol composition. Seven lines of lettuce ($T_0$) containing the ${\gamma}-TMT$ transgene were produced by Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. The inheritance and expression of the transgene were confirmed by DNA and RNA gel blot analyses as well as quantification of tocopherols and ${\gamma}-TMT$ activities. The ratio of ${\alpha}-/{\gamma}-tocopherol$ content (TR) varied from 0.6 to 1.2 in non-transformed plants, while the $T_0$ plants had ratios of 0.8 to 320. The ratio ranged from 0.4 to 544 in 41 $T_1$ progenies of the $T_0$ transgenic line gTM3, and the phenotypic segregation indicated monogenic inheritance of the transgene (i.e., 3:1 = dominant:wild-type classes). There was a tight relationship between the TR phenotype and ${\gamma}-TMT$ activity, and enzyme activities were affected by the copy number and transcript levels of the transgene. The TR phenotype was stably expressed in $T_2$ progenies of $T_1$ plants. The results from this study indicated that a stable inheritance and expression of Arabidopsis ${\gamma}-TMT$ transgene in lettuce results in a higher enzyme activity and the conversion of the ${\gamma}-tocopherol$ pool to ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ in transgenic lettuce.

• Korean Journal of Animal Reproduction
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.179-185
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• 2003

To determine whether the diphtheria toxin-A (DT) gene disrupts development of thymocytes in transgenic animal, the DT-A gene was used for the production of transgenic mice directed by proximal Ick promoter sequences. Two transgenic founder mice that contained several copies of transgene were produced by DNA microinjection and integration of transgene in transgenic mice was confirmed by PCR and Southern blotting analysis. Transgenic $F_1$ and $F_2$ mice were produced by outbreeding of founder and $F_1$ mice to investigate expression of transgene and phenotypes in transgneic mice. Expression of the diphtheria toxin gene was confirmed in thymus, spleen and liver of transgenic mice by RT-PCR. In circulating blood of transgenic mice, lower number of circulating white blood cells and platelets were observed compared with that of normal mice. In addition, transgneic mice had reduced number of circulating peripheral T-cells analyzed by FACS with anti-CD3 antibody. The data in these transgenic mice indicate that DT gene can play a disruptive role in developing thymocytes of transgenic mice resulted in lower number of T-cells that can be applicable to a wide range of tissues in other animals.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.46-55
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• 1999

The expressed sequence tags(ESTs) from immature seed of rice, Oryza sativa cv Milyang 23, were partially sequenced and analyzed by homology. As of 1998, the partial sequences of about 6,600 cDNA clones were analyzed from normal and normalized immature seed cDNA libraries. About 2,200 ESTs were putatively identified by BLASTX deduced amino acid sequence homology analysis. About 20% of them were putatively identified as storage proteins. Also the clones were highly homologous to genes involved particularly in starch biosynthesis, glycolysis, signal transduction and defenses. Compared to 35% of redundancy in the ESTs of normal cDNA library, that from the substracted library was 15%. The Korea Rice Genome Network is maintained to provide the updated information of sequences, their homologies and sequence alignments of ESTs. For the stable expression of transgene in rice, diverse vectors were developed for overexpression, targeting and gene dosage effect with transit peptides (Tp) and matrix attachment region (MAR) sequence from chicken lysozyme locus. The rice calli were transformed via Agrobacterium tumefaciens LBA4404(pSB1) with the triparental mating technique and selected by herbicide resistance. The green fluorescent protein(GFP) gene in expression vector under the control of rbcS promoter-Tp was overexpressed upto 10 % of the total soluble protein. In addition, the Tp-sGFP fusion protein was properly processed during translocation into chloroplast. The expression of sGFP in the presence of MAR sequences was analyzed with Northern and immunoblot analysis. All the lines in which sGFP transgene with MAR sequence, showed position independent and copy number-dependent expression, while the lines without MAR showed the varied level of expression with the integration site. Thus the MAR sequence significantly reduced the variation in transgene expression between independent transformants.

• Plant Breeding and Biotechnology
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.269-281
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• 2017

With the continual development of genetically modified (GM) crops, it has become necessary to develop detailed and effective molecular characterization methods to select candidate events from a large pool of transformation events. Relative to traditional molecular analysis methods such as the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Southern blot hybridization, next generation sequencing (NGS) technology for whole-genome sequencing of complex crop genomes had proven comparatively useful for in-depth molecular characterization. In this study, four transformation events, including one in Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)-resistant rice, one in resveratrol-producing rice, and two in beta-carotene-enhanced soybeans, were selected for molecular characterization. To merge NGS analysis and Southern blot-hybridization results, we confirmed the transgene insertion sites, insertion construction, and insertion numbers of these four transformation events. In addition, the read-coverage depth assessed by NGS analysis for inserted genes might provide consistent results in terms of inserted T-DNA numbers in case of complex insertion structures and highly duplicated donor genomes; however, PCR-based methods can produce incorrect conclusions. Our combined method provides an effective and complete analytical approach for whole-genome visual inspection of transformation events that require biosafety assessment.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.378-383
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• 2020

The objective of this research was introduction of chit42 to tuber mustard plants through Agrobacteriummediated transformation against white mold caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. The binary plasmid pGisPEC1 was used in this study. Polymerase chain reaction analysis detected the transgene in 27 transformants with a transformation efficiency of 6.9%. Southern blot test was used to assess the copy number of transgene in tuber mustard plants. One, two, two, and two chit42-related bands were observed in the transformed lines TMB4, TMB7, TMB12, and TMB18, respectively. Enzymatic tests showed a significant increase in the activity of endochitinase in protein isolated from leaf tissues of chit42 transgenic 75-day tuber mustard lines. The pathogenicity of three pathogen isolates was tested on the leaves of transformed plans. The results of current study showed that expression of the gene chit42 in tuber mustard plants markedly reduced infection radius on the leaves 7 days after inoculation with the fungus.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.342-347
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• 2000

The objectives of this study were to investigate the genetic and phenotypic features of male sterile transformants by pollen-specific expression of diphtheria toxin gene and to find out inheritance patterns of transgene to the next generation. When backcrossed (BC) progenies were tested for expression of kanamycin resistance ($Km^R$), 9 lines out of 13 lines, except 4 lines ($BC_{1}5-13,\;BC_{1}5-23,\;BC_{1}5-28,\;BC_{1}5-32$), showed the ratio of $Km^R$ to kanamycin sensitive ($Km^S$), from 1:30 to all $Km^S$. As a result, they were much lower than Mendelian segregation of a dominant gene. To determine whether male sterility is a heritable and stable trait, 5 male sterile plants ($BC_{1}5-13,\;BC_{1}5-14,\;BC_{1}5-23,\;BC_{1}5-32,\;BC_{1}5-33$ lines) which had different transgene copy numbers were backcrossed as female parents with pollens from wild type. To confirm the existence of the DTx-A gene in the genome of the progenies, PCR was conducted using specific primers of the DTx-A coding region. A PCR band of 428 bp was obtained from each generation, which is the predicted size of the DTx-A gene fragment. Trangenes were inherited to the next $BC_4T_0$ progenies and showed male sterility, however, based on the copy numbers of DTx-A gene male sterile plants did not show predicted ratio. When male sterile plants were backcrossed with fertile plants, fruit capsule sizes and seed settings were relatively reduced from those of selfing wild type plants. The fruit sizes and seed settings were reduced in proportion to the increase in the copy number of DTx-A gene.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.115-123
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• 2009

In recent years, several genetically modified (GM) crops have been developed worldwide through the recombinant DNA technology and commercialized by various agricultural biotechnological companies. Commercialization of GM crops will be required the assesment of risks associated with the release of GM crops. In advance of the commercial release of GM crops, developer should submit the several information on GM crops for approval. In this study, we carried out to provide the molecular data for the risk assessment of GM rice containing insect-resistant gene, modified Cry1Ac (CryIAc1). Through the molecular analysis with CryIAc1 induced GM rice, we confirmed the steady integration and expression of transgene, the transgene copy number, the adjacent region sequences of inserted gene into rice genome, and the transgene stability in progenies. For the qualitative PCR detection methods, specific primer pairs were designed on the basis of integration sequences, and construct- and event-specific detection markers were developed for leaf folder-resistant rice, Cr7-1 line. From these results, we demonstrated that the molecular data and the PCR detection methods of leaf folderresistant GM rice could be acceptable to conduct the biosafety and environment risk assessment.