RESUMEN

In yeast, trehalose-6-phosphate synthase is a key enzyme for trehalose biosynthesis, encoded by the structural gene TPS1. Trehalose affects sugar metabolism as well as osmoprotection against several environmental stresses, such as heat and desiccation. The TPS1 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was engineered under the control of the CaMV 35S promoter for constitutive expression in transgenic potato plants by Ti-plasmid of Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. The resulting TPS1 transgenic potato plants exhibited various morphological phenotypes in culture tubes, ranging from normal to severely retarded growth, including dwarfish growth, yellowish lancet-shaped leaves, and aberrant root development. However, the plants recovered from these negative growth effects when grown in a soil mixture. The TPS1 transgenic potato plants showed significantly increased drought resistance. These results suggest that the production of trehalose not only affects plant development but also improves drought tolerance.

Asunto(s)

Ingeniería Genética , Glucosiltransferasas/genética , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genética , Solanum tuberosum/fisiología , Agrobacterium tumefaciens/genética , ADN de Plantas/genética , ADN de Plantas/metabolismo , Desastres , Glucosiltransferasas/metabolismo , Fenotipo , Plantas Modificadas Genéticamente , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa , Regiones Promotoras Genéticas/genética , ARN Mensajero/genética , ARN Mensajero/metabolismo , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/enzimología , Solanum tuberosum/genética , Transformación Genética , Agua