title: The roles of bacterial and host plant factors in Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation.
abstract: The genetic transformation of plants mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens represents an essential tool for both fundamental and applied research in plant biology. For a successful infection, culminating in the integration of its transferred DNA (T-DNA) into the host genome, Agrobacterium relies on multiple interactions with host-plant factors. Extensive studies have unraveled many of such interactions at all major steps of the infection process: activation of the bacterial virulence genes, cell-cell contact and macromolecular translocation from Agrobacterium to host cell cytoplasm, intracellular transit of T-DNA and associated proteins (T-complex) to the host cell nucleus, disassembly of the T-complex, T-DNA integration, and expression of the transferred genes. During all these processes, Agrobacterium has evolved to control and even utilize several pathways of host-plant defense response. Studies of these Agrobacterium-host interactions substantially enhance our understanding of many fundamental cellular biological processes and allow improvements in the use of Agrobacterium as a gene transfer tool for biotechnology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, State University of New York, Stony Brook, NY, USA. benoit.lacroix@stonybrook.edu.
authors.forename: Benoît
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lacroix
authors.forename: Vitaly
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Citovsky
mesh_terms: D021581:Active Transport, Cell Nucleus; D016960:Agrobacterium tumefaciens / Q000235:genetics*; D001692:Biological Transport; D001709:Biotechnology / Q000379:methods; D002450:Cell Communication; D002843:Chromatin / Q000378:metabolism; D003593:Cytoplasm / Q000378:metabolism; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D018744:DNA, Plant / Q000235:genetics; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D010944:Plants / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014170:Transformation, Genetic
chemical_list: D002843:Chromatin; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D018744:DNA, Plant; C036483:T-DNA