A team of horticulturists, bioengineers and agricultural specialists from several institutions in China succeeded in obtaining sweeter tomatoes without sacrificing size, weight or yield by modifying two genes.
Their study, published in magazine Naturedetails the process by which they modified the genes of a variety of tomato to reduce the production of proteins that lower the levels of enzymes involved in making sugar.
In the same issue of the journal, Amy Lanctot and Patrick Shih, from the University of California, Berkeley (USA) published an article in the section News and Viewsanalyzing the results of the Chinese team.
Researchers obtained sweeter tomatoes by modifying two genes
Over the centuries, farmers around the world have crossed tomato plants to increase yields and fruit size, but this process has resulted in the loss of tomato sweetness. Previous efforts to increase the sweetness of large tomatoes resulted in reduced yield.
In this new study, the researchers took a different approach to creating sweeter tomatoes by investigating the genetic causes of the loss of sweetness and partially correcting the effects of crossbreeding on the tomato genome.
The team identified two genes, called SlCDPK26 and SlCDPK27, that were more active in larger tomato varieties. These genes code for proteins that reduce the levels of enzymes responsible for producing sugar. The researchers genetically modified a large tomato variety, called ‘Money Maker’, to disable these genes.
A promising result for both agriculture and consumers
The result? The modified plants produced tomatoes with 30% higher fructose and glucose levels without affecting size, weight or yield. Taste tests confirmed the increased sweetness. In addition, the genetic modifications reduced the number and size of the seeds, which could be an attractive feature for consumers, writes Phys.org.
Although these modified tomatoes are not as sweet as small varieties, such as cherry tomatoes, the researchers suggest that future genetic adjustments could bring the large tomatoes to the same level of sweetness as the smaller ones. This progress paves the way for large, sweet, high-yielding tomatoes, a promising solution for agriculture and consumers.
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Source: www.descopera.ro
