For several decades, agricultural products have been losing their nutritional value. This is due to the chemicalization of agricultural products, as well as the infertility of soils.
An international team of scientists recently learned why tomatoes in stores have become completely tasteless. To do this, the experts collected genetic data from 725 tomato cultivars, compiled a pangenome, and compared it to Heinz 1706, the genome of a domesticated tomato.
About 5,000 genes found in the pangenome turned out to be missing in Heinz 1706. And many of these genes are associated with protection against pathogens. Modern tomato varieties do not have immunity, so they fight against harmful substances by spraying.
It also turned out that the version of the TomLoxC gene responsible for the tomato’s unique flavor is absent in many modern cultivars. But it is also found in 90% of wild varieties. Fortunately, lost taste genes can be recovered and new varieties created with them.
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Source: Ferra
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