An international team of researchers has developed a new tomato variety that produces a popcorn-like aroma using CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology. The recent study highlights the potential to enhance tomato flavor without impacting crop yield.
The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most widely consumed crops worldwide, but decades of domestication and selective breeding for yield, resistance, and uniformity have diminished its aromatic complexity. To restore the compounds responsible for flavor, scientists focused on the molecule 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (2-AP), known to produce the characteristic popcorn aroma and found in foods like aromatic rice.
The researchers identified two homologous genes in tomato, SlBADH1 and SlBADH2, which regulate 2-AP. Using CRISPR/Cas9, they deactivated these genes in the commercial variety Alisa Craig, creating single mutants (each gene separately) and double mutants (both genes simultaneously).
The findings showed that the SlBADH2 mutation significantly increased 2-AP levels, with the double mutants increasing them more than 4-fold over the control, suggesting a synergistic effect between the two genes.
A key finding of the study is that the genetic modification did not impact essential agronomic traits like flowering time, plant height, fruit weight, soluble sugars, organic acids, and vitamin C content. Traditionally, enhancing flavor often meant reducing yield, so this progress marks a significant step towards biofortifying flavor without sacrificing productivity.
The development of aroma-enhanced tomatoes could revolutionize the horticultural market, particularly in premium and gourmet segments. This includes integrating the trait into commercial varieties, developing fruits with tailored flavor profiles, and enhancing the sensory experience for consumers.
"The development of tomatoes with a distinctive aroma shows that we are entering a new era of agricultural biotechnology, where we can recover and improve valuable traits without sacrificing productivity," said Miguel Ángel Sánchez, executive director of ChileBio.
The researchers intend to implement this approach on more widely used commercial cultivars to evaluate its scalability. Subject to regulatory approval, the technology could move towards practical agricultural use, enabling similar enhancements in other horticultural crops.
Source: 24horas.cl
