We thought that if we could double the rate of transfer seen on Earth, it would have been promising. While this was extremely successful, an unanticipated result was a high rate of infection. For a number of reasons, the growth of bacteria is much more difficult to control in microgravity than it is on Earth. As a result, the high rate of infection blocked the vascular system of the plants. Bula states that this problem can be corrected, in part, by reducing the amount of bacteria since less is needed to do the job in microgravity.
Work is already underway on a second gene transfer experiment.
This experiment will include refinements from the data gathered on STS 95, and instead of a marker gene will transfer a gene to the soybeans that has a medical application. Such experimentation is extremely important to farmers, as genetically engineered varieties will make up more than 70 percent of the soybeans planted nationally this year. Improved gene transfer opens the door to a host of other exciting possibilities including plants that are insect resistant reducing the need for chemical insecticides and plants that incorporate medical vaccines.