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Transgene Inactivation: Plants Fight Back!

Bio/Technology volume 12, pages 883–888 (1994)Cite this article

Abstract

Desirable new phenotypes created by the introduction of foreign DNA into plants are frequently unstable following propagation, leading to a loss of the newly acquired traits. This genetic instability is due not to deletion or mutation of the introduced DNA but rather to the inactivation of the transgene. In this review, we discuss the mechanisms that might be responsible for transgene inactivation and examine means of stabilizing gene expression in transgenic plants.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CSIRO Division of Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia

    Jean Finnegan

  2. USDA/ARS and UC Berkeley Department of Plant Biology Plant Gene Expression Center, 800 Buchanan Street, Albany, CA, 94710

    David McElroy

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  1. Jean Finnegan
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  2. David McElroy
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Correspondence to Jean Finnegan.

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Finnegan, J., McElroy, D. Transgene Inactivation: Plants Fight Back!. Nat Biotechnol 12, 883–888 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0994-883

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