A genetically modified tomato, or transgenic tomato, is a tomato that has had its genes modified, using genetic engineering. The first trial genetically modified food was a tomato engineered to have a longer shelf life (the Flavr Savr), which was on the market briefly beginning on May 21, 1994.[1] The first direct-consumption tomato was approved in Japan in 2021.[2] Primary work is focused on developing tomatoes with new traits, such as increased resistance to pests or environmental stresses.[3] Other projects aim to enrich tomatoes with substances that may offer health benefits or be more nutritious. As well as aiming to produce novel crops, scientists produce genetically modified tomatoes to understand the function of genes naturally present in tomatoes.
Agrobacterium-mediated genetic engineering techniques were developed in the late 1980s that could successfully transfer genetic material into the nuclear genome of tomatoes.[4] Genetic material can also be inserted into a tomato cell's chloroplast and chromoplast plastomes using biolistics. Tomatoes were the first food crop with an edible fruit where this was possible.[5]
- ^ Martineau, B., "First Fruit", McGraw Hill Book Co., p191
- ^ "Sanatech Seed launches world's first GE tomato". www.fruitnet.com. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
- ^ Nowicki, Marcin; et al. (11 October 2013), "Late Blight of Tomato", Translational Genomics for Crop Breeding, pp. 241–265, doi:10.1002/9781118728475.ch13, ISBN 9781118728475, S2CID 83142160
- ^ Jeroen S. C. van Roekel, Brigitte Damm, Leo S. Melchers, and Andr Hoekema (1993). "Factors influencing transformation frequency of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum)". Plant Cell Reports. 12 (11): 644–647. doi:10.1007/bf00232816. PMID 24201880. S2CID 37463613.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Ruf, S.; Hermann, M.; Berger, I.; Carrer, H.; Bock, R. (2001). "Stable genetic transformation of tomato plastids and expression of a foreign protein in fruit". Nature Biotechnology. 19 (9): 870–875. doi:10.1038/nbt0901-870. PMID 11533648. S2CID 39724384.