Since the first transgenic plants were produced back in the early 1980s, there have been substantial developments towards the genetic engineering of most crops of our world. Initial studies using isolated plant cells and removing their cell walls to form protoplasts, offered the possibility of transferring genetic material by Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer, chemical agents or electrical charges. However, in those cases were isolated protoplasts could be transformed, often, a shoot regeneration system was not available to induce the production of transgenic plants and any such regenerated plants were subject to mutation or chromosomal of cultured plant organs, such as leaf abnormalities. By the mid-1980s, the use disks, offered the convenience of combining gene transfer, plant regeneration and selection of transformants in a single system. This approach, enabled the production of stable, phenotypically-normal, transgenic potato and tomato plants in culture. By the late 1980s, the use of biolistics offered a means of inserting foreign genes into plant cells which where inaccessible to Agrobacterium infection. Even today, this technology is now standard practice for the production of some transgenic plants.

Is a state-of-the-art, compilation of the most up-to-date methods available for the genetic manipulation of the major crops of our world

I: Cereals and Grasses.- Chapter-1: Transgenic rice plants.- Chapter-2: Transformation of wheat by biolistics.- Chapter-3: Genetic transformation of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) by co-culture of immature embryos with Agrobacterium.- Chapter-4: Maize transformation.- Chapter-5: Genetic engineering of oat (Avena sativa L.) via the biolistic bombardment of shoot apical meristems.- Chapter-6: Generation of transgenic rye (Secale cercale L.) plants with single and defined T-DNA inserts, following Agrobacteriummediated gene transfer.- Chapter-7: Particle inflow gun-mediated transformation of Sorghum bicolor.- Chapter-8: Sugarcane transformation.- Chapter-9: Biolistic transformation of fescues and ryegrasses.- II: Woody Plants.- Chapter-10: Transformation of banana using microprojectile bombardment.- Chapter-11: Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of citrus.- Chapter-12: Coffa spp. genetic transformation.- Chapter-13: Genetic transformation of tea.- Chapter-14: Microprojectile-mediated transformation of pineapple.- Chapter-15: Regeneration and genetic transformation of apple (Malus spp.).- Chapter-16: Genetic transformation of pear via Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer.- Chapter-17: Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of grape embryogenic calli.- Chapter-18: Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation of cotton.- III: Root Crops.- Chapter-19: Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of potato.- Chapter-20: Genetic transformation of radish (Raphanus sativus L.) by floral-dipping.- Chapter-21: Genetic transformation of Allium cepa mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens.- Chapter-22: Transformation of carrot.- Chapter-23: Production of transgenic cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz).- IV: Legumes, Brassicas, fruits and oilseed crops.- Chapter-24: Soybean transformation using the Agrobacterium-mediated cotyledonary-node method.- Chapter-25: In vitro regeneration and transformation of Vicia faba.- Chapter-26: Gene technology in pea.- Chapter-27: Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of cabbage.- Chapter-28: Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of canoa.- Chapter-29: Transformation of cauliflower.- Chapter-30: Tomato transformation -the nuclear and chloroplast genomes.- Chapter-31: Genetic transformation of watermelon.- Chapter-32: Genetic transformation of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.).- Abbreviations.