Plant Pigment Genetic Engineering Kit

Use Agrobacterium - nature's own gene smuggler - to change the color of plant leaves. Watch the results appear as your plant grows.

Agrobacterium tumefaciens has been quietly doing genetic engineering for millions of years. Scientists co-opted it to create some of the most important crops on Earth - golden rice, Bt corn, disease-resistant papaya. In this kit, you'll use the same delivery mechanism to introduce the RUBY pigment gene into Nicotiana plants and observe altered leaf coloration as the transformation takes hold.

This is plant biotech at its most hands-on.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Rehydrate freeze-dried Agrobacterium carrying the RUBY pigment plasmid
• Infiltrate plant tissue using the included blunt syringes
• Culture transformed cells on selective agar plates
• Grow plants and observe pigmentation changes emerging over days

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN

• How Agrobacterium delivers DNA into plant cells - and why it works so reliably
• The basics of anthocyanin biosynthesis and how pigment genes are regulated
• How transgenic plants are created, selected, and identified
• Why this same technique underlies most commercial GMO crop production worldwide 

PERFECT FOR
Students and hobbyists comfortable with a multi-week project. Plant transformation takes time — watching results emerge gradually is part of what makes it rewarding. Great for plant biology, biotech, or genetics coursework.

NOTES 

• Live plants are currently out of stock. Expected back in mid-May 2026. Seeds are available now and ship worldwide.

• Live plants cannot ship internationally. US customers only for the live plant option.

• Includes step-by-step plant transformation protocol and guide to plant pigment genetics.

WHAT'S INCLUDED:
Biological Materials

• Plant transformation Agrobacterium w/ RUBY Plasmid, Freeze Dried
  Nicotiana tabacum plant or seeds (depending on kit version)

Media & Reagents

• Injection media concentrate
  LB Rifampicin/ Spectinomycin agar
  Sterile water
  5 Sprouting disks
  Bag of soil

Lab Supplies

• 7 Petri plates (2 pack for classroom kit)
  2 Test tubes 50mL
  1 Test tube for measuring 50mL
  5 Test tubes 15mL
  5 Blunt syringes (15 for classroom kit)
  5 Pasteur pipettes
  1 Pot
  1 Plastic tub for sprouting plants 
  Agar preparation glass bottle
  10 Sterile inoculation loops
  10 Nitrile gloves (3 pack for classroom kit)

Documentation

• Step-by-step plant transformation protocol
  Guide to plant pigment genetics

Access protocol