AGROBACTERIUM-MEDIATED TRANSFORMATION OF THE TERPENOID INDOLE ALKALOID-PRODUCING PLANT-SPECIES TABERNAEMONTANA-PANDACAQUI

Plants of the Apocynaceae family produce a wide range of terpenoid ind ole alkaloids (TIAs) which have important pharmaceutical applications. Studies of the molecular mechanisms controlling TIA biosynthesis may eventually provide possibilities to improve product yield by genetic m odification of plants or cell cultures. However, these studies suffer from the lack of transformation/regeneration protocols for Apocynaceae plants. We chose to study the feasibility of Agrobacterium tumefacien s-mediated transformation of Tabernaemontana pandacaqui, because of th e availability of an efficient regeneration procedure for this member of the Apocynaceae family. A procedure to produce transgenic T. pandac aqui plants was established, albeit with low efficiency. Transgenic ex pression was demonstrated of an intron-containing beta-glucuronidase r eporter gene and of a gene coding for the TIA biosynthetic enzyme stri ctosidine synthase from Catharanthus roseus, another Apocynaceae speci es.