ANALYSIS OF DEVELOPMENTALLY INTERESTING GENES CLONED FROM HIGHER-PLANTS BY INSERTIONAL MUTAGENESIS

The ability of transposable elements to generate gene mutations by excising from one site in the genome and reintegrating into new, different sites elsewhere in the genome has led to the development of procedures whereby the elements can be used to tag specific gene sequences for eventual isolation and analysis through gene cloning. This transposon tagging strategy is particularly useful in those situations where limited knowledge of the biochemistry of the target gene precludes gene cloning by conventional strategies. This approach, in conjunction with the more general insertional mutagenesis approach using T-DNA, has led to the cloning and subsequent analysis of several genes from higher plants involved in particular developmental processes. Studies of this nature should eventually shed light on the precise molecular mechanisms utilized to regulate and control cellular differentiation in plants.