Which one of the following is commonly used in transfer of foreign DNA into crop plants? (A) Trichoderma harzianum (B) Meloidogyne incognito (c) Agrobacterium tumefaciens (d) Penicillium expansum
Option C. Trichoderma harzianum is a bio fungicide and is used for suppression of various disease-causing fungal pathogens. Penicillium expansum, blue mold, causes postharvest decay of stored apples and produces the carcinogenic mycotoxin patulin. Meloidogyne incognita, southern root-knot nematode" or the "cotton root-knot nematode", is a nematode with multiple hosts. Agrobacterium tumefaciens is a soil-plant pathogenic bacterium that carries Ti plasmid. It can transfer a particular segment of the tumor-inducing (Ti) plasmid into the nucleus of infected cells. The transferred T-DNA is then integrated into the host genome and transcribed with it. This ability of Agrobacterium tumefaciens to transfer the T-DNA in host genome is explored in genetic engineering to transfer the desired DNA segment, carrying the gene of the interest, into genome of selected organisms.
