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ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #58469
Title: VARIABLE SPECIFICITY OF TN7::LACZY INSERTION INTO THE CHROMOSOME ROOT-COLONIZING PSEUDOMONAS PUDIDA STRAINS

Author
item Staley, Thomas
item LAWRENCE, ERNEST - NC DNR, RALEIGH
item HEMMING, BRUCE - INOTECH, ST. LOUIS

Submitted to: Applied and Environmental Microbiology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/13/1995
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Many types of soil microorganisms are beneficial to crop growth. In order to better understand and improve the response of plants to these microorganisms, more reliable and sensitive methods are needed to follow their fate in agricultural soils and on crop roots. Molecular methods are now being used to mark bacteria. Three strains of root-colonizing bacteria called pseudomonads were marked with a foreign gene from E. coli. All marked isolates from one strain were normal, whereas some of the marked isolates from the two other strains were abnormal. These results show that careful selection of genetically-engineered microorganisms (GEMs) marked with foreign genes must be done before they are used in environmental studies.

Technical Abstract: Use of the Tn7::lacZY monocomponent transposition system to label three strains of P. putida resulted in single lacZY insertions into the chromosome, and in the same location, in strain GR12-2, as expected. In contrast, strain R20 had single insertions in different locations, whereas strain PH6 apparently had multiple insertions. Careful selection of lacZY-labeled pseudomonads derived using this system is indicated when isolates are to be used in environmental studies.