[Arabidopsis] Arabidopsis leaf transient expression protocol

[John Runions]

Hi All,

I have received quite a lot of feedback concerning use of the Tobacco 
leaf infiltration protocol for expressing fluorescent protein fusions 
transiently in Arabidopsis.  The consensus is that it works to a point 
but nowhere near as well as in Tobacco.  We have used it to express 
fluorescent proteins targeted to peroxisomes and Golgi bodies.  One 
interesting bit of feedback was that the fluorescence is not always 
targeted as one would expect it to be when used in Arabidopsis and the 
second interesting thing was that this type of protocol might work well 
in some ecotypes but not in others.  Specifically, I hear that 
Wassilewskaija (WS-0) transforms well but that Columbia (Col-0) does 
not.  That would figure wouldn't it?  I am a bit emabarassed to admit 
that I don't know the background of the plants that we have 
transformed.  They looked Columbia-like but...

Clearly, this is a technique that would facilitate many group's research 
if we can get it to work better.  Most who have used the trick 
successfully say that choice of leaf (still growing rosette leaf from 
young healthy plant) seems to be critical.  Try the technique if you can 
and let us know the results.

Sincerely, John.
-- 

*********************************
C. John Runions, Ph.D.
School of Biological and Molecular Sciences
Oxford Brookes University
Oxford, UK
OX3 0BP

email: jrunions at brookes.ac.uk
phone: +44 (0) 1865 483 964