CRISPR | Scientists discover how respiration drives tomato color and ripening

How does a tomato obtain the enormous amount of energy and substrates necessary to go from green to red? Researchers from CRAG identify a key regulator that could revolutionize the production and preservation of tomatoes. The study shows that an alternative mitochondrial mechanism is the engine that provides the necessary components for tomatoes to ripen, produce ethylene, and acquire their characteristic red color. At the Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG) in Barcelona, Spain, a team of scientists discovered a fundamental genetic regulator that controls tomato ripening, paving the way for longer-lasting and more resistant fruits. The study, published in the journal Plant Physiology, reveals the network of genes that coordinates the transition of the fruit from the growth phase to the ripening phase. Led by IRTA researcher at CRAG, Igor Florez-Sarasa, with Ariadna Iglesias-Sanchez as the first author, the team demonstrated that the mitochondrial pathway known as ...