Genetic engineering of reproductive incompetence in radiata pine

An important application of genetic engineering to commercial forestry is t he generation of reproductively incompetent trees. This requires isolation and characterisation of the regulatory regions of the genes expressed at th e different stages of male and female reproductive-organ development. A gen e family showing specific expression in Pinus radiata immature male and fem ale cone buds has been isolated and characterised. We discuss different str ategies for genetic engineering of reproductive incompetence, concentrating on cell ablation and the problems and possible solutions associated with t his approach.