Stable transformation of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) by cocultivation of tissues with Agrobacterium tumefaciens carrying a binary plasmid vector

Stable transformation of eggplant to kanamycin resistance was obtained by cocultivation of cotyledonary and young leaves with the hypervirulent, fully oncogenic Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain A281 carrying plasmid pGA472. No transformation was observed when using the disarmed A. tumefaciens LBA4404 strain carrying pGA472 or when using either strain for cocultivation with eggplant suspension cells. The NPTII enzyme and DNA dot blot assays performed on callus cells growing in the presence of kanamycin indicated both the presence and expression of the foreign gene. The highest proportion of transformed explants was obtained from intact cotyledonary leaf pieces while the highest NPTII enzyme specific activity was detected in callus cells originating from superficially wounded cotyledonary leaf pieces. Kanamycin-resistant plantlets were regenerated after six months in culture. © 1989 Springer-Verlag.