12 | Advancing Seed in Alberta Wembley Wembley CO-OPERATIVE SEED CLEANING ASSOCIATION LTD. P: (780)766-2630 F: (780)766-2154 E: [email protected] 10103 97st Wembley, AB T0H 3S0 Manager: Wade Perrin Hegland Seed Farm 780-831-0807 Harris Select Seed Farms 780-933-3074 / 780-830-8113 Danny Jones 780-814-2418 Fosters Seed and Feed Ltd. 800-379-4804 / 780-354-2107 Ger-Den Seed Farm Ltd. 780-518-1505 Scenic Heights Farms 780-876-1750 Processors For The Following Growers: • Producer Car Loading Site • Colour Sorting • 2 CFIA Accredited Graders NEW! 13’ by 90’ Super B friendly truck scale Hopper Bins for Producer Cars 3 Truck Unloading Stations In the initial stage of their research, the research team developed tools needed for this work including an AAFC nif cluster, peptide nanocarriers, DNA delivery technology, microspore culture and regeneration, selectable markers and selection procedures, and a nitrogen-fixation assay for plant cells. Their creation of the AAFC nif cluster is a good example of the important advances they are making. Ziemienowicz explains the ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen is limited to a small number of organisms including certain bacteria. These nitrogen-fixing organisms have about three or four genes responsible for producing the nitrogenase enzyme, which converts atmospheric nitrogen gas into ammonia, and about 10 to 12 genes that produce co-factors needed for nitrogenase activity. “Prior to our work, biotechnologists were able to deliver only two out of 16 essential nif genes into plants. Recently, an Australian group reported delivery of 16 nif genes, but each gene individually. In addition, both research efforts were done in tobacco as a model plant, and not in cereals,” she says. “The AAFC nif cluster that we developed contains all 16 essential nif genes and two selectable marker genes (needed to maintain the nif genes in the plant genome). The cluster was designed to allow expression of the bacterial genes in triticale and wheat plant cells.” In the next stage of the work, the researchers used their tools to move the AAFC nif cluster into triticale cells. “We deliver the AAFC nif cluster into triticale cells using a unique nanocarrier developed by Dr. Eudes’ team, in particular by Dr. Trevor MacMillan. The nanocarrier is a group of cell-penetrating peptides that carry DNA cargo into a specific location in a plant cell,” explains Ziemienowicz. “We chose plant mitochondria as the best delivery place because these plant organelles offer the most optimal environment for nitrogenase production and activity. We use microspore cells (precursors of pollen) because they can be relatively easily regenerated into entire plants. “Once the cargo-carrier nanocomplexes reach their destination, the DNA is released and integrated into the mitochondrial genomes, and the nif genes are expressed, which leads to nitrogenase production.” Recently, the researchers have shown that all the delivered nif genes are indeed expressed in the triticale microspore “Many have labelled nitrogen-fixing cereal crops as the ‘holy grail’. Nitrogen-fixing cereals could bring a lot of significant benefits.” —Lauren Comin