Researchers have successfully used CRISPR to develop tomato plants that use water more efficiently, meaning they need less water to grow. This is achieved without compromising the number of tomatoes, their taste, or their quality.
Tomato plants tend to lose a lot of water through small openings in their leaves, known as stomata, which also let in carbon dioxide necessary for growth.
By removing a specific gene in the tomatoes, researchers have made the stomata partially close during the hottest hours of the day. This saves water while still allowing the plants to absorb enough carbon dioxide.
Achieving a balance between reduced water use and not decreasing yield has been a challenge since reducing water loss through stomatal pores often hinders CO2 uptake. However, this was achieved here, both in greenhouse and large-scale field experiments.
Read more at warpnews.org