Biotechnology: Principles and Processes — BIOLOGY STD 12 Science — Question

→ T-DNA is a gene of Agrobacterium tumifaciens bacterium.
→ Agrobacterium tumifaciens, a pathogen of several dicot plants.
→ The tumor inducing (Ti) plasmid of Agrobacterium tumifaciens is able to deliver a piece of DNA known as 'T-DNA' to transform normal plant cells into a tumor.
→ These tumor cells produce the chemicals required by the pathogen.
→ The tumor inducing (Ti) plasmid of Agrobacterium tumifaciens has now been modified into a cloning vector, which is no more pathogenic to the plants.
→ Ti plasmid is still able to use the mechanisms to deliver genes of our interest into a variety of plants.