TRANSGENIC TOBACCO CULTIVARS RESISTANT TO PSEUDOMONAS-SYRINGAE PV. TABACI

Six oriental cultivars of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) were evaluate d for transformation and foreign gene expression. Leaf-disc explant ti ssue was transformed with Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain LBA4404 car rying the plasmid pARK21, which contains NPTII gene and ttr (tabtoxin resistance) gene conferring the resistance to Pseudomonas syringe pv, tabaci. The disease resistance of regenerated plants and segregation o f this trait up to R-7 progeny were investigated in a greenhouse and u nder field conditions. Our results indicated that the resistance to Ps eudomonas syringae pv. tabaci introduced by transformation is heritabl e.