INHERITANCE OF A CO-TRANSFERRED FOREIGN GENE IN THE PROGENIES OF TRANSGENIC RICE PLANTS

The integration pattern and the inheritance of exogenous DNA in transgenic rice plants were analysed. Plasmid pCH (4.8 kb), that contains chimaeric cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter-hygromycin phosphotransferase structural gene, and plasmid pGP400 (7.2 kb), possessing oat phytochrome promoter and structural gene of bacterial beta-glucuronidase, were co-transferred into protoplasts of rice (Oryza sativa L.) plants via electroporation. Primary transformants (T0 generation) and their progenies (T1, T2 and T3) were selected by hygromycin B. Southern blot analysis of inserted genes in transgenic rice plants suggests the integration of an intact hygromycin phosphotransferase gene and non-functional DNA fragments into host genome. Co-inheritance of the hygromycin phosphotransferase gene and beta-glucuronidase gene was also observed. There were no significant differences in terms of the morphology and size of seeds between untransformed and transgenic plants (T3 generation).