Soneji & Rao 2009 (Article) Ananas

Genetic Engineering of Pineapple

Author(s):—J.R. Soneji & M.N. Rao

Corresponding email:—jrs@crec.ifas.ufl.edu

Publication:—Transgenic Plant Journal 1-10. (2009)

Abstract:—Pineapple is an important crop for tropical countries. It is consumed as fresh fruit as well as processed or canned, dehydrated and juice products. Even though it is grown in more than 82 countries around the world, there is a remarkable lack of commercial varieties. ‘Smooth Cayenne’ is the only cultivar which dominates the trade and pineapple industry. Conventional breeding has yielded very poor results making genetic engineering particularly suitable for genetic improvement of pineapple. Tissue culture regeneration has been widely reported in pineapple making genetic engineering more amenable. Genetic engineering also offers the means for manipulating horticulturally important traits without altering the cultivar phenotype. This review provides an overview of the genetic transformation efforts carried out in pineapple.

Keywords:—Agrobacterium tumefaciens, Ananas comosus L. Merr., genetic improvement, particle bombardment, transformation