$\beta$-Glucuronidase (GUS) gene of Escherichia coli was introduced into sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) cells by particle bombardment and expressed in the regenerated plants. Microprojectiles coated with DNA of a binary vector pBI121 carryin...
$\beta$-Glucuronidase (GUS) gene of Escherichia coli was introduced into sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) cells by particle bombardment and expressed in the regenerated plants. Microprojectiles coated with DNA of a binary vector pBI121 carrying CaMV35S promoter-GUS gene fusion and a neomycin phosphotransferase gene as selection marker were bombarded on embryogenic calli which originated from shoot apical meristem-derived callus and transferred to Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 1 mg/L 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and 100 mg/L kanamycin. Bombarded calli were subcultured at 4 week intervals for six months. Kanamycin-resistant calli transferred to MS medium supplemented with 0.03 mg/L 2iP, 0.03 mg/L ABA, and 50 mg/L kanamycin gave rise to somatic embryos. Upon transfer to MS basal medium without kanamycin, they developed into plantlets. PCR and northern analyses of six regenerants transplanted to potting soil confirmed that the GUS gene was inserted into the genome of the six regenerated plants. A histochemical assay revealed that the GUS gene was preferentially expressed in the vascular bundle and the epidermal layer of leaf, petiole, and tuberous root.