Plants contain all kinds of ingredients which can have a beneficial impact on our health. Researchers at Plant Research International are investigating how these substances are created in plants. This knowledge will then be used to develop plants with a good balance of substances which are beneficial to health through breeding or genetic modification.
These are substances with interesting names like flavonoids, carotenoids, and capsaicin. All of these are substances which may be beneficial to health. And they are substances which occur in different plants in varying amounts.
Our researchers are investigating why it is that plants produce those substances and why one plant produces a lot and another much less. To this end, they unravel the metabolic routes that lead to the production of these types of substances. They also look into which genes are involved in their production. With this information, the researchers can alter the quantities present via genetic modification and breeders can develop new varieties which contain higher quantities of healthy substances in a targeted way.
Wild relative of crops often form a good source of new genetic variation: some naturally produce a lot of a particular substance. These plants serve as a direct source for breeding. Our researchers develop the ‘semi-manufactures’ which breeders can develop further into commercial products.
Tinkering with the form
The research is focusing not only on the quantity of constituents, but also the form in which they occur. Some flavonoids in tomato, for example, are not properly absorbed by humans. This is usually a function of the sugar groups which are attached to them. The researchers create tomatoes with flavonoids which have the right sugar groups attached to them and which are easily absorbed.
At the same time, the researchers also work on the taste of the vegetable or fruit to be developed. After all, the product is more likely to be eaten if it tastes good.
That said, the researchers’ main focus is on ensuring that the new plants have a good balance of substances that promote health. It is not about making vegetables or fruit with extremely high contents of those substances. The conclusive proof that these types of substances really are good for our health has not yet been delivered, despite decades of study.
In the meantime, our researchers are also looking for new substances which are beneficial to health. To this end, they are working together with other researchers who test extracts from plants in bio-assays.
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