The new case study of the Louis Bonduelle Fundation is now available : about Plant biology, breeding and genetic engineering such as GMO.
As living multi-cellular organisms, humans and vascular plants share numerous characteristics. Both are made up of cells, tissues and organs, and these cells contain DNA organized in a nucleus and carry out metabolic processes such as respiration and growth. The major differences are the energy source (fixed carbon versus photons) and certain aspects of the mode of reproduction.
The following review of first-year university plant biology will prepare us to evaluate the state of the art in the practice of plant variety improvement and the creation of new organisms based on direct modification of DNA.
The future: plant variety improvement for nutritional purposes
Plants are the principal source of certain nutrients and nutritional factors such as fibre, minerals, vitamins and antioxidants, not to mention most of our carbohydrates. Content and composition vary from one species to the next, from one mode of cultivation to the next, but especially from one variety to the next.
For example, the vitamin C content of a fresh tomato ranges from a wretched few milligrams to nearly 200 mg per 100 g. In kiwi fruit, these values may range from 50 to 140 mg per 100 g …
Variations in nutritional factors are sometimes astonishing. Depending on the variety, the beta-carotene content of broccoli has been found to vary six-fold, while the glucosinolate content may vary 20-fold (among 50 varieties analyzed).
It therefore appears that promoting the consumption of specific varieties of fruit or vegetable would be in some cases just as helpful as constantly admonishing consumers to eat more fruits and vegetables.
Plant colours (pigments now considered as micronutrients) have often been the object of controlled breeding because of their contribution to the attractiveness of the fruit or vegetable to the eater. In contrast, undesired characteristics such as astringency and bitterness have been targeted for elimination, breeders being unaware or unconcerned that the associated compounds may also have value as nutrients.
Decreasing the bitter taste of endives, cucumbers and various types of cabbages or the hotness of peppers are examples of improvements in palatability achieved by decreasing nutritional value. Drewnowski and Gomez-Carneros (2000) showed the association between bitterness and phenolic compounds, while Radovich et al (2005) did likewise for glucosinolates in cabbage and Pitrat and Foury (2003) showed the association between hotness and capsaicin content.
You can read the full article on the website of the foundation
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