Issue Environ. Biosafety Res. Volume 8, Number 2, April-June 2009 Page(s) 79 - 86 DOI 10.1051/ebr/2009005 Published online 02 July 2009

Environ. Biosafety Res. 8 (2009) 79-86
DOI: 10.1051/ebr/2009005

Soil persistence of DNA from transgenic poplar

Martina Bonadei, Alma Balestrazzi, Barbara Frigerio and Daniela Carbonera

Dipartimento di Genetica e Microbiologia, Università di Pavia, via Ferrata 1, 27100 Pavia, Italy

Received January 11, 2008; Accepted April 14, 2009; published online 2 July 2009

Abstract - The presence of recombinant DNA in soil cultivated with white poplars (Populus alba L.) expressing either the bar transgene for herbicide tolerance or the StSy transgene for resveratrol production, respectively, was investigated in a greenhouse over a 20-month period. The bar trial included the transgenic lines 5P56 and 6EA22P56 and the untransformed line, while the StSy trial was established with the transgenic lines 5EAC1 and 12EAC1 and with the untransformed line. All the transgenic poplars harbored the nptII marker gene. Plantlets were cultivated in pots, and soil samples were mixed in order to obtain composite pools which were used for molecular analyses. The 35SCaMV-bar (1504 bp), 35SCaMV-StSy (1403 bp) and NosP-nptII (1188 bp) sequences were detected in total DNA extracted from soil samples taken at different times after planting, using PCR/Southern blot hybridization. Microcosm experiments, carried out to assess the effects of temperature and DNA purity on transgene persistence, revealed only a partial correlation between the intensity of hybridization signals and the parameters tested.

Key words: greenhouse trial / microcosm / Populus alba / recombinant DNA / soil persistence

Corresponding author: carbo@ipvgen.unipv.it

© ISBR, EDP Sciences 2009

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