Agricultural Reviews

The ability to introduce isolated DNA into cells has tremendous influence on advances of molecular biology. Recently, with the development of attractive strategies for gene therapy, successful gene delivery has gained importance once again and become a major challenge in this field. During the past decades, a wide repertoire of gene transfer techniques has evolved. The intentional introduction of recombinant DNA molecules into a living organism can be achieved in many ways. The array of methods available to move DNA into the nucleus provides the flexibility necessary to transfer genes into cells as physically diverse are Microinjection, Biolistic gene transfer, Electroporation, Sonoporation, Laser irradiation/Photoporation, Magnetofection, Hydroporation and Impalefection. The purpose of this article is to summarise available physical methods of gene transfer, their principles, advantages and limitations.