Field testing and exploitation of genetically modified cassava with low-amylose or amylose-free starch in Indonesia

• Published in: Transgenic research Vol. 21; no. 1; pp. 39 - 50
• Main Authors: Koehorst-van Putten, H. J. J, Sudarmonowati, E, Herman, M, Pereira-Bertram, I. J, Wolters, A. M. A, Meima, H, de Vetten, N, Raemakers, C. J. J. M, Visser, R. G. F
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer-Verlag 01-02-2012; Springer Netherlands; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: acetates; Acetic acid; Agriculture - methods; Amylose; Amylose - analysis; Amylose - genetics; Animal Genetics and Genomics; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedical Engineering/Biotechnology; Biotechnology; breeding; cassava; cassava starch; Cloning, Molecular; Crops; cultures; cyclic somatic embryogenesis; expression; field experimentation; Food; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genetic Engineering; Genetic technics; Herbicide Resistance - genetics; Indonesia; industrial crops; Life Sciences; Lycopersicon esculentum; Manihot - genetics; Manihot - physiology; Manihot esculenta; manihot-esculenta crantz; Methods. Procedures. Technologies; Molecular Medicine; Original Paper; Outbreeding; Plant breeding; Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant Roots - genetics; plants; Plants, Genetically Modified; potato; regeneration; rheological properties; Roots; Sauces; Starch; Starch - analogs & derivatives; Starch - genetics; Starch Synthase - genetics; synthase; t-dna; tomato sauce; transformation; Transformation, Genetic; Transgenic animals and transgenic plants; Transgenic plants; Transgenics; Netherlands; Indonesia; Field trial; Low-amylose starch; transformation; Cassava; RNAi granule-bound starch synthase construct; NDP-glucose-starch glucosyltransferase; RNA interference; Genetic transformation; Enzyme; Starch; Transferases; Glycosyltransferases; Gene silencing; Agrobacterium; Amylose; Bacteria; Hexosyltransferases; Agrobacterium transformation; Rhizobiaceae; Genetically modified organism
• ISSN: 0962-8819; 1573-9368
• DOI: 10.1007/s11248-011-9507-9

The development and testing in the field of genetically modified -so called- orphan crops like cassava in tropical countries is still in its infancy, despite the fact that cassava is not only used for food and feed but is also an important industrial crop. As traditional breeding of cassava is difficult (allodiploid, vegetatively propagated, outbreeding species) it is an ideal crop for improvement through genetic modification. We here report on the results of production and field testing of genetically modified low-amylose transformants of commercial cassava variety Adira4 in Indonesia. Twenty four transformants were produced and selected in the Netherlands based on phenotypic and molecular analyses. Nodal cuttings of these plants were sent to Indonesia where they were grown under biosafety conditions. After two screenhouse tests 15 transformants remained for a field trial. The tuberous root yield of 10 transformants was not significantly different from the control. Starch from transformants in which amylose was very low or absent showed all physical and rheological properties as expected from amylose-free cassava starch. The improved functionality of the starch was shown for an adipate acetate starch which was made into a tomato sauce. This is the first account of a field trial with transgenic cassava which shows that by using genetic modification it is possible to obtain low-amylose cassava plants with commercial potential with good root yield and starch quality.