Since the first reports of tobacco transformation experiments in 1983, a number of fundamental processes, such as gene expression, cell
metabolism, or plant development, are being studied using gene transfer
experiments. The spectrum of plant species amenable to transformation
is continuously widening. This is partly because of the refinement of
tissue culture techniques and also because of the development of more
and more diverse tools for gene transfer and expression. In this chapter, I
will give a list of plasmid constructs containing various components use-
ful for expressing foreign genes in plants: expression cassettes into which
genes of interest can easily be inserted, assayable reporter genes that
allow accurate quantification of gene expression, selectable marker genes
for the selection of transformants, and plant promoters to achieve more
specific patterns of gene expression.