Why are carrots orange? It is thanks to a pigment, the carotene, present in abundance in these tubers. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA) sequenced the genome of this vegetable and discovered the gene responsible for the accumulation of such a quantity of carotenes. Interesting work since this pigment has many qualities: source of provitamin A (the precursor of vitamin A), its antioxidant properties help fight against aging skin cells and eyes. Scientists publish this study in the journal Nature Genetics.
Address vitamin A deficiency
Now that researchers have identified the gene that allows carotene to accumulate in carrots, they hope to be able to improve their nutritional quality and restore them to a place of choice in our menus. “The deficiency in vitamin A is a public health issue, making the development of sustainable sources of vitamin A a priority to improve crops. The abundance of carotene makes carrots an important source of provitamin A in the human diet” underline the authors in their publication. The researchers then suggest selecting carrots that have the best genes for accumulating the orange pigment to obtain the richest possible crops in carotene over the long term.
Improving the nutritional qualities of cassava and fruits
In addition to carotene, the researchers plan to use the sequencing of carrot genes to improve other characteristics such as the content of other pigments (such as anthocyanin) or carbohydrates, but also their resistance to insects and diseases, their response to environmental stress or their ability to grow and reproduce.
But scientists do not intend to limit themselves to carrots. “This study could have applications for other root crops such as cassava, and similar mutations are also known to influence pigment accumulation in fruits, extending applications beyond tubers.“explains Philipp Simon, lead author of the study, when asked about the Nature Genetics journal blog.
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