Buster Resistant Sugarcane

The aim of this paper is to describe the evaluation of engineered herbicide-resistance in transgenic sugarcane of Herbicide treatment of crops allows economic weed control. To be useful, herbicides must distinguish between crop plant variety NCo3 10 under field conditions. and weed, and this often limits usage. Engineering herbicide resistance into crop plants via genetic transformation techniques is a novel approach to age old problem. A gene construct which confers resistance to the herbicide BusterR (active ingredient glufosinate ammonium), was obtained for research purposes from AgrEvo, Germany. Using the technique of microprojectile bombardment for DNA transfer and embryogenic callus as the recipient material, herbicide resistance was engineered into sugarcane variety NCo310. Young transgenic cane plants grown in the glasshouse were asymptomatic when sprayed with 4 L/ha of the herbicide. Nontransformed NCo3 10 plants showed phytotoxic symptoms within days of being sprayed and plants died after three weeks. Further evaluation at a small scale field trial showed Production of transgenic sugarcane in vitro Sugarcane variety NCo3 10 was transformed by microprojectile bombardment of embryogenic callus (Snyman et al., 1996). The DNA vector used to transform callus contained the synthetic pat gene which confers resistance to the herbicide Buster (active ingredient: 200 g/L, glufosinate ammonium; AgrEvo, Germany). Plants from three independent bombardment events were analysed at the DNA level according to methods described by Gallo-Meagher and Irvine (1996). One of the plants was chosen for further evaluation in the field as it was resistant to 4 L k a herbicide when sprayed the transgenic plants to be resistant to a rate of 7 L/ha Buster in the glasshouse. after repeated applications on a plant crop and two ratoons.