Transient Gene Expression in Plants Is an Efficient Experimental Platform for Functional Genomics

The large body of data on plant gene expression accumulated through comparative studies directs the efforts of researchers to study the subtle mechanisms of the influence of target genes and, as a result, to develop relatively simple and, at the same time, effective approaches to understand the physiological role of protein products of a gene. Numerous studies have convincingly demonstrated the effectiveness of transient expression strategies for characterizing plant gene functions. The objectives of the review were (1) to review the advantages and limitations of various plant transient expression systems and methods used to elucidate the roles of gene products, (2) to summarize current knowledge on the use of transient expression approaches to understand the subtle mechanisms underlying gene function, and (3) to describe advances in efficient transient expression of plant genes. The review discusses the main and critical steps of each of the methods of transient gene expression in plants, their areas of application, and the main results obtained using plant objects and their contribution to our knowledge of the subtle mechanisms of gene functions underlying plant growth and development, including elucidation of the mechanisms regulating complex metabolic pathways.