Setaria italica Transformation Service

Foxtail millet (Setaria italica) is an excellent C4 model plant and drought-tolerant crop, widely used in food and energy crop research and development. Based on Agrobacterium-mediated technology, Creative Biogene has established a stable transformation system suitable for different foxtail millet varieties, covering gene overexpression, RNA interference, gene editing, and other approaches to provide an efficient platform for functional gene validation, stress resistance improvement, and desirable trait introduction. We provide one-stop services from vector construction and tissue culture to positive plant screening, ensuring high transformation efficiency and data traceability.

Setaria italica (foxtail millet), as a typical C4 photosynthetic plant, is an important model system for studying photosynthesis, drought tolerance, and genetic regulatory mechanisms. It not only has close phylogenetic relationships with important food crops such as maize and sorghum but also offers experimental advantages, including a relatively small genome (approximately 515 Mb), strong self-compatibility, and a short growth cycle. Its wild relative, Setaria viridis (green foxtail), has become an important complementary model for transformation efficiency assessment due to its even shorter life cycle and high reproductive capacity. Plants in the Setaria genus taxonomically belong to angiosperms, monocotyledons, Poaceae family, Panicoideae subfamily, Paniceae tribe, which includes many important C4 crops such as pearl millet, sugarcane, and switchgrass. Due to its good inter-species gene flow, Setaria italica has also become important material for studying domestication processes, genetic diversity, and phenotype association analysis. Foxtail millet has been cultivated for a long time in northern China, India, and other arid and semi-arid regions, and its stress resistance, resource utilization efficiency, and ecological adaptability make its importance increasingly prominent against the background of future climate change.

Service Overview

Relying on an advanced plant transformation platform and an experienced molecular biology team, Creative Biogene provides genetic manipulation services for foxtail millet, covering the entire transformation process, specifically including:

Agrobacterium-mediated Stable Genetic Transformation System Construction
Transformation Condition Optimization and System Development Adapted to Different Cultivated Varieties
Target Gene Overexpression and RNA Interference (RNAi) Validation
Gene Editing Target Design and Vector Construction
Molecular Detection and Functional Validation of Genetically Transformed Positive Plants
Support for Multiple Phenotype Screening and Stress Treatment Experimental Design

We serve not only functional gene validation in basic research but also variety creation and trait improvement in applied research.

Service Advantages

Exclusive System Development Support: We have established genetic transformation systems suitable for multiple foxtail millet cultivated varieties, offering personalized condition optimization, especially for high-yielding and stress-resistant varieties, including strain screening, infection condition adjustment, hormone concentration gradient design, etc.
Multi-strategy Genetic Manipulation Technology: Covering traditional overexpression and RNA interference strategies, and providing advanced editing tools such as CRISPR/Cas9 and CRISPR/Cas12a, capable of achieving various genetic level operations, including single gene knockout, multi-gene editing, and promoter modification.
High-throughput Screening and Identification Capability: Relying on automated molecular detection platforms and greenhouse cultivation systems to achieve high-throughput processing from transgenic plant screening and molecular verification to T1 generation stable genetic analysis.

Application Directions

Salt/drought/heat tolerance trait development.
Biofuel utilization research.
Food nutritional value improvement.
New hybrid system development (such as male sterility system construction).
Genetic regulatory mechanism analysis of C4 photosynthetic pathways.

Service Process

Requirement Communication: Clarify target genes and experimental purposes, develop project plans
Material Preparation: Clients can provide genes themselves or have us synthesize and construct vectors
Tissue Culture and Transformation Implementation: Agrobacterium infection based on optimized shoot apex or embryogenic callus tissue
Transgenic Screening and Verification: Provide positive plant reports and molecular data
T1 Generation Genetic Analysis and Trait Evaluation (optional)
Data Delivery and Technical Summary Report

Common Problems and Coping Strategies

Problem Type	Coping Measures
Strong variety dependence	Provide preliminary experiments to confirm the variety's suitability and reaction conditions
Low transformation rate	Optimize bacterial strains, bacterial suspension concentration, hormone ratios, and vacuum treatment parameters
Low gene expression level	Provide promoter screening suggestions and expression enhancer design
Difficulty in positive screening	Use multiple detection methods, including PCR and fluorescent markers

Case Study

Contact Us

Setaria italica is not only a drought-resistant food crop with extensive practical value but also a key model system for studying C4 photosynthesis, plant evolution, and crop improvement mechanisms. Based on years of plant transformation research and service experience, Creative Biogene has built a mature foxtail millet genetic transformation service platform to comprehensively support gene function research, new variety creation, and rapid mining of high-performance gene resources. If you have relevant project requirements, please feel free to contact us at any time, and we will provide you with precise, efficient, and customizable transformation solutions.

References:

Li P, Brutnell TP. Setaria viridis and Setaria italica, model genetic systems for the Panicoid grasses. J Exp Bot. 2011;62(9):3031-3037.
Nadeem F, Ahmad Z, Ul Hassan M, et al. Adaptation of Foxtail Millet (Setaria italica L.) to Abiotic Stresses: A Special Perspective of Responses to Nitrogen and Phosphate Limitations. Front Plant Sci. 2020;11:187.

* For research use only. Not intended for any clinical use.

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