Effect of ethylene on Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated gene transfer to melon

The effect of ethylene on gene transfer mediated by an Agrobacterium tumefaciens harbouring a binary vector with the β‐glucuronidase (uid A) gene was investigated in melon, Cucumis melo L. Explants excised from melon cotyledons produced ethylene, the production of which was increased by the addition of 1‐aminocyclopropane‐1‐carboxylic acid (ACC, 20 or 200 μM), and inhibited by the addition of aminoethoxy‐vinylglycin (AVG, 10 μM). Agrobacterium inoculation of explants increased ethylene production, while application of AVG during inoculation reduced it. After 4 days of co‐cultivation with Agrobacterium, gene transfer in the explants was assayed by transient uid A expression. Application of ACC to the co‐cultivation medium reduced Agrobacterium‐mediated gene transfer to explants and that of AVG increased it. These results suggest that ethylene affects the A. tumefaciens‐mediated gene transfer to the explants excised from melon cotyledons, and the efficiency of Agrobacterium‐mediated gene transfer can be improved by inhibiting ethylene production from the explants.