By Stephen Beech via SWNS
A rose has been grown without any thorns.
The breakthrough could lead to new fruit in supermarkets, say American scientists.
According to Greek mythology, red roses first appeared when Aphrodite pricked her foot on a thorn, spilling blood on a white rose.
Roses’ thorns have captured the imaginations of poets ever since.
But they aren’t the only plants with dangerous spikes, technically known as prickles.
Prickles have evolved independently in species across the plant kingdom with their main function being warding off herbivores.
They’re even present in certain eggplant and rice crops.
But, until now, it has been unclear how thorns appear so frequently in such unrelated species.
Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) in New York have discovered that the same ancient gene family is responsible for prickles across many plants, despite millions of years of evolutionary separation.
Dr. James Satterlee, of CSHL, was inspired to investigate prickles after touring a field where his advisor, Professor Zachary Lippman, grows hundreds of nightshades.
Dr. Satterlee said: “I noticed many had very prominent prickles.
“So, I asked, ‘What do we know about that? What’s going on with this adaptation?’ It turns out we knew almost nothing.”
Working alongside scientists in Spain, Dr. Satterlee began analyzing eggplants, which led him to a gene family called Lonely Guy, or LOG.
He explained that LOG genes are normally responsible for making a hormone that causes cell division and expansion.
Dr. Satterlee discovered that certain LOG mutations also eliminate prickles in eggplants.
The research team, whose findings were published in the journal Science, wondered if LOG-related genes be responsible for prickle gains and losses across multiple plants over millions of years.
They started combing through previous studies and contacting scientists around the globe.
The team worked with the New York Botanical Garden to examine specimens with and without prickles.
Researchers at Cornell University used genome editing to eliminate prickles in desert raisins, a foraged berry native to Australia.
Another scientist in France suppressed prickles in roses.
The team came to associate prickles with LOG-related genes in about 20 species.
Lippman says while the discovery could be used to engineer plants without prickles, it also has big implications for understanding “convergent evolution” – how completely different species independently develop similar traits.
He added: “You’re really asking about life in general – evolution of traits.
“How do they emerge? How are they modified? What are the underlying mechanisms? What can we learn about things we take for granted?”
Lippman believes the answer could eventually make lesser-known species, such as desert raisins, a new fruit in supermarkets.
And, at the very least, he says it should make life easier for horticulturalists plucking roses.
