Virtually all genetically engineered crops contain antibiotic resistance genes. This has raised concerns that these genes could be transferred from plants to microbes, with dire consequences to human health. Although the jury is still out on the risks of such horizontal gene transfer (see 832 for Commentary), Chua and colleagues have introduced a new transformation method that avoids the use of antibiotic resistance genes altogether—using instead an inducible cytokinin synthesis gene that stimulates shoot regeneration from transformed cells (p. 916).
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DeWitt, N. Markers outgrow antibiotic resistance. Nat Biotechnol 17, 840 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/12815
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/12815