Foreign DNA of bacterial plasmid origin is transcribed in crown gall tumours (original) (raw)

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• Published: 01 October 1977

Nature volume 269, pages 535–536 (1977)Cite this article

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Abstract

Agrobacterium tumefaciens incites cancerous growths in dicotyledonous plants called crown gall tumours. Large plasmids in oncogenic Agrobacterium strains1 carry genetic information which is essential for tumour induction2,3. We recently reported that axenic crown gall tumour tissue contains multiple copies of a small part of the oncogenic (Ti) plasmid of the inciting bacterial strain4. The mechanism of induction of crown gall tumours thus seems to resemble that of some virally induced animal tumours: the eukaryotic cell is transformed by addition of new genetic information which is stably maintained through subsequent cell divisions5–7. The means by which foreign DNA brings about the tumorous growth pattern of crown gall cells is unknown. The first step in elucidating its mode of action is reported here: we have detected RNA transcripts of the foreign genetic information in the tumour cell.

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Authors and Affiliations

1. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195
   MARTIN H. DRUMMOND, MILTON P. GORDON, EUGENE W. NESTER & MARY-DELL CHILTON

Authors

1. MARTIN H. DRUMMOND
2. MILTON P. GORDON
3. EUGENE W. NESTER
4. MARY-DELL CHILTON

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DRUMMOND, M., GORDON, M., NESTER, E. et al. Foreign DNA of bacterial plasmid origin is transcribed in crown gall tumours.Nature 269, 535–536 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1038/269535a0

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• Received: 14 June 1977
• Accepted: 15 August 1977
• Published: 01 October 1977
• Issue date: 06 October 1977
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/269535a0

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