Salt tolerance of Capsicum annuum with introduced total DNA from Rhizophora apiculata

Total DNA of Rhizophora apiculata, a salt-resistant seashore plant, was introduced into Capsicum annuum cv. via pollen tubes formed after self-pollination. The transformed progenies showed obvious stronger salt tolerance compared with the control. About 55% of the transgenes can survive, flower, and fruit when grown on the beach and watered directly with seawater. By contrast, no control survived under the same condition. Further analyses revealed a specific protein band of 17.5 kDa on protein SDS-PAGE gel and a specific DNA band of 1.1 kb in RAPD analyses. These results indicate that it is feasible to introduce exogenous DNA through pollen tubes, and that the improved salt tolerance of the progenies of transformed plants is related to genomic change.