GoldBio’s LBA4404 Agrobacterium chemically competent cells allow you to obtain high transformation efficiency in applications such as gDNA or cDNA library construction. Our LBA4404 strain harbors a rifampicin resistance (rif) gene. Furthermore, LBA4404 has an octoprine-type Ti plasmid pAL4404 without self-transport function, containing the vir genes. Our LBA4404 strain can be used in genetic transformation of tomato, tobacco and other plants.
Table 1: Antibiotic disc sensitivity for GoldBio’s Agrobacterium strains (using standard BD antibiotic discs)
| Antibiotic Selection |
Amp | Carb | Chlor | Gent | Kan | Rif | Spect | Strep | Tet |
100 μg/ml | 100 μg/ml | 30 μg/ml | 100 μg/ml | 30 μg/ml | 50 μg/ml | 25 μg/ml | 50 μg/ml | 50 μg/ml | 50 μg/ml |
GV3101 | I | R | R | PR | R | S | R | S | R | S |
EHA 105 | R | R/S | R | n/a | R/S | S | R | S | R | S |
LBA 4404 | S | S | S | n/a | S | S | R | S | R | S |
AGL-1 | R | R | R | n/a | R/S | S | R | S | R | S |
C58C1 | R | R | R | n/a | R/S | S | R | S | R | S |
S = SensitiveR = ResistantR/S =intermediate zones using standard discs.I =growth in inhibitory zone with standard disc. “Opaque”, not clear zone of inhibition. |
Product SpecificationsCompetent cell type: Chemical CompetentSpecies: A. tumefaciensStrain: LBA4404Transformation efficiency: ≥1 x 104 cfu/μg pCAMBIA1391z DNABlue/white screening: No
Storage/Handling: This product may be shipped on dry ice. LBA4404 Agrobacterium chemically competent cells should be stored at -80°C, pCAMBIA1391z Control DNA should be stored at -20°C and recovery medium should be stored at 4°C immediately upon arrival. When stored under the recommended conditions and handled correctly, these products should be stable for at least 1 year from the date of receipt.
Reagents Needed for One Reaction
- LBA4404 Chemically Competent Agrobacterium: 50 μl
- DNA (pCAMBIA1391z, 10 ng/μl): 5 μl
- Recovery medium: 1 ml
Quality Control
Transformation efficiency is tested by using the pCAMBIA1391z control DNA supplied with the kit and using the protocol given below. Transformation efficiency should be ≥1 x 104 CFU/μg pCAMBIA1391z DNA. Untransformed cells are tested for appropriate antibiotic sensitivity.
General Guidelines
- Handle competent cells gently as they are highly sensitive to changes in temperature or mechanical lysis caused by pipetting.
- Thaw competent cells on ice, and transform cells immediately following thawing. After adding DNA, mix by tapping the tube gently. Do not mix cells by pipetting or vortexing.
Calculation of Transformation Efficiency
Transformation Efficiency (TE) is defined as the number of colony forming units (cfu) produced by transforming 1 μg of plasmid into a given volume of competent cells.
- TE = Colonies/μg/Dilution
- Colonies = the number of colonies counted
- μg = amount of DNA transformed in μg
- Dilution = total dilution of the DNA before plating
Example: Transform 1 μl of (10 pg/μl) control plasmid into 25 μl of cells, add 975 μl of Recovery Medium. Dilute 10 μl of this in 990 μl of Recovery Medium and plate 50 μl. Count the colonies on the plate the next day. If you count 250 colonies, the TE is calculated as follows:Colonies = 250μg of DNA = 0.00001Dilution = 10/1000 x 50/1000 = 0.0005TE = 250/0.00001/0.0005 = 5.0 × 1010