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Bacterial citrate synthase expression and soil aluminum tolerance in transgenic alfalfa

  • Genetic Transformation and Hybridization
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Abstract

Alfalfa is very sensitive to soil acidity and its yield and stand duration are compromised due to inhibited root growth and reduced nitrogen fixation caused by Al toxicity. Soil improvement by liming is expensive and only partially effective, and conventional plant breeding for Al tolerance has had limited success. Because tobacco and papaya plants overexpressing Pseudomonas aeruginosa citrate synthase (CS) have been reported to exhibit enhanced tolerance to Al, alfalfa was engineered by introducing the CS gene controlled by the Arabidopsis Act2 constitutive promoter or the tobacco RB7 root-specific promoter. Fifteen transgenic plants were assayed for exclusion of Al from the root tip, for internal citrate content, for growth in in vitro assays, or for shoot and root growth in either hydroponics or in soil assays. Overall, only the soil assays yielded consistent results. Based on the soil assays, two transgenic events were identified that were more aluminum-tolerant than the non-transgenic control, confirming that citrate synthase overexpression can be a useful tool to help achieve aluminum tolerance.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge Monica Schmidt for generous advice, Greg Martin for valuable technical help, and Ann Bunce and Donald Wood for their help with the greenhouse plant management and soil assays. This work was funded by NATO Advanced Fellowship Programme 1999, grant #. 215.32 that supported D.R.’s stay at The University of Georgia, and by State and Hatch monies allocated to the Georgia Agricultural Experiment Stations

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Author notes

  1. Pierluigi Barone

    Present address: Department of Crop Sciences, University of Illinois, 1201 W Gregory, Urbana, IL, USA

  2. Daniele Rosellini

    Present address: Dipartimento di Biologia Applicata, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy

  3. Joseph Bouton

    Present address: The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Ardmore, OK, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, University of Georgia, 30602, Athens, GA, USA

    Pierluigi Barone, Daniele Rosellini, Peter LaFayette, Joseph Bouton & Wayne Parrott

  2. Dipartimento di Biologia Applicata, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy

    Fabio Veronesi

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  1. Pierluigi Barone
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  2. Daniele Rosellini
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Correspondence to Pierluigi Barone.

Additional information

Communicated by A. Atanassov.

Pierluigi Barone and Daniele Rosellini contributed equally to this work.

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Barone, P., Rosellini, D., LaFayette, P. et al. Bacterial citrate synthase expression and soil aluminum tolerance in transgenic alfalfa. Plant Cell Rep 27, 893–901 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-008-0517-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-008-0517-x

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