Biolistische

Biolistische is an adjective used to describe methods that rely on particle bombardment to deliver biological material into cells, tissues, or organisms. In practice, biolistic transformation involves coating microscopic particles—commonly gold or tungsten—with nucleic acids or other molecules and propelling them into target cells using a gene gun. The approach is employed across plant and animal systems and is especially valuable when other delivery methods are ineffective.

Mechanism and scope: During a biolistic procedure, the prepared tissue is placed near a macrocarrier and subjected to a short, high-pressure gas burst that accelerates the particles to high velocity. Upon impact, the particles penetrate cell walls or membranes, delivering DNA or other cargo to the cytoplasm or nucleus. Depending on conditions, this can result in stable genomic integration or transient expression. Biolistics can also deliver proteins, dyes, or selectable markers to assist in screening transformed cells.

Applications: Biolistic methods are widely used in plant genetics to transform species recalcitrant to Agrobacterium-based approaches, enable tissue-specific studies, and facilitate rapid functional analyses. They are also applied in some fungal, algal, and animal cell contexts and in vitro systems. The technique is valued for its flexibility, not relying on biological vectors and offering a relatively short path from DNA preparation to expression.

Advantages and limitations: Advantages include a broad host range, the ability to co-deliver multiple constructs, and applicability to tissues that are hard to transform by other means. Limitations include potential tissue damage, random DNA integration, variable expression levels, and the need for specialized equipment and optimization of particle size, DNA amount, and delivery parameters.

History and terminology: The method is often called biolistic transformation or particle bombardment. It originated in the 1990s with developments by researchers such as John F. Sanford and colleagues, and remains a standard tool in plant biotechnology and related fields.