CIMAP research finds new way to enhance nutritional quality of plants

Lucknow: A recent research by scientists at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research – Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CSIR-CIMAP) has chanced upon ways to enhance the nutritional quality of plants.

Till now , if scientists wanted to overexpress a gene in any plant, it had to be made a transgenic plant (one which is altered to achieve higher nutritional value) . However, due to certain regulations imposed by the food safety authorities across the world , the transgenic plants are not directly accessible to the farmers and consumers.

Now through the new research, the scientists have found that the nutritional quality of plants can be enhanced using ‘complementary peptides’ (complementary form of a short protein found in plants). As part of this research, complementary peptides, when sprayed on the plant, can enhance its nutritional value and properties.

“This will enhance the protein accumulation in a plant without making it transgenic. We have worked with three peptides (short proteins found in plants) for proof of the concept. We tested it on thale cress, rose, grapes, tobacco and tomatoes and found the synthesis of molecules including – anthocyanin, flavonols and lignin,” said a scientist Ashish Sharma.

Anthocyanin helps in prevention of inflammation, in protection against type II diabetes, cancer and heart disease. Flavonols have antioxidants, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties while lignin is also rich in antioxidants and possesses anti-viral and anti-microbial properties.

“Thousands of peptides can be created from various proteins. If we know the function of a gene which we wish to enhance in a plant this technique can be used,” said Sharma.

Director CSIR-CIMAP, Prabodh Kumar Trivedi, who was also involved in the research, said that the technique could be used on any plant with more than 10 amino acids conserved in it for protein.

“The technique is useful for any type of stress borne by a plant, including abiotic stress like salt and drought and biotic stress like insects and pathogens. To validate this technology, the team sprayed complementary peptides on plants and mutant plants developed by the team. The gene is not functional in mutant plants, so the complementary peptides did not show any difference on them,” shared Trivedi.

When used on fruit plants like grapes and tomatoes, the nutritional values were found enhanced and when used on a white rose, there were certain changes in the colour of the flower. In tobacco, the levels of flavanols and anthocyanin were found to have increased.

“This can be a gamechanger for the plant industry. A patent has been filed for the research,” Trivedi added.