Genetic Switch Allows Plants to Grow Very Fast

A team of researchers in the United States recently made a breakthrough in the field of genetics, when they identified a gene that, once acted upon, allows specific plants to grow incredibly fast.

The new discovery can be applied to switchgrass, Miscanthus species and other biofuel crops, which means that one of the greatest obstacles in the path of sustainable biofuel production may have just been eliminated.

All of this can be achieved by switching off a simple gene, say investigators at the Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, which is based at the Duke University. The end result are plants that mature a lot quicker, and which develop much thicker roots than usual.

In a genome association study, the Duke team looked for genes that may be involved in controlling how roots grow, differentiate and establish a support for the plants they belong to.

The group discovered that the gene UPBEAT1 controls the expression of peroxidases, a class of enzymes which play a role in the growth of roots. When this gene is turned on, the roots stop growing.

Instead, the begin the process of differentiation, which means that that stop proliferating and start to actually support the plant. Geneticists at the university say that they plan to use genetic manipulation to prevent the UPBEAT1 from being turned on.

In the study, the group also determined the mechanism through which UPBEAT1 functions. It works by regulating the way free radicals flow through the body of the plant.

Whenever the gene is not expressed, the radicals are allowed to roam freely through the roots, promoting the development of larger cells, in ever-increasing numbers. As the gene is slowly turned on, the flow of free radicals is reduced proportionally.

Researchers now plant to test their manipulation technique on a population of grasses, to see whether permanently turning off the gene leads to the faster development of plants, for earlier harvesting.

If that turns out to be the case, then biofuel crops could be harvested several times per year, leading to an increase in fuel production without the need to recruit more land from food crops to do so.

Additionally, it could be that fast-growing grasses could act as carbon traps, removing the dangerous greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere, and storing it within their bodies.

Given the rampant spread of global warming, climate change, and their subsequent effects, scientists can't ignore any potential avenues that leads to at least a portion of the CO2 being removed from the air we breathe daily, LiveScience reports.