La. Castle et al., GENETIC AND MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF EMBRYONIC MUTANTS IDENTIFIED FOLLOWING SEED TRANSFORMATION IN ARABIDOPSIS, MGG. Molecular & general genetics, 241(5-6), 1993, pp. 504-514
Over 5000 trans,oenic families of Al Arabidopsis thaliana produced fol
lowing seed transformation with Agrobacterium tumefaciens were screene
d for embryonic lethals, defectives, and pattern mutants. One hundred
and seventy-eight mutants with a wide range of developmental abnormali
ties were identified. Forty-one mutants appear from genetic studies to
be tagged (36% of the 115 mutants examined in detail). Mapping with v
isible markers demonstrated that mutant genes were randomly distribute
d throughout the genome. Seven mutant families appeared to contain chr
omosomal translocations because the mutant genes exhibited linkage to
visible markers on two different chromosomes. Chromosomal rearrangemen
ts may therefore be widespread following seed transformation. DNA, gel
blot hybridizations with 34 tagged mutants and three T-DNA probes rev
ealed a wide range of insertion patterns. Models of T-DNA structure at
each mutant locus were constructed to facilitate gene isolation. The
value of such models was demonstrated by using plasmid rescue to clone
flanking plant DNA from four tagged mutants. Further analysis of gene
s isolated from these insertional mutants should help to elucidate the
relationship between gene function and plant embryogenesis.