Biofortified tomatoes may be the first gene-edited crops permitted for sale in England. Gene editing happens when scientists can 'switch off' a molecule in the genetic code, making it different from genetically modifying plants.
A team of researchers in Norwich has found that the gene-edited fruit produces more of a precursor to vitamin D3 when a specific molecule that normally converts this vitamin to cholesterol is blocked. When exposed to UV light, this precursor – provitamin D3 – can be converted to essential vitamin D3.
Prof Cathie Martin, who led the research at the John Innes Centre, said that the development, published in Nature Plants, could be hugely beneficial, reports PA.
