The Flavr Savr Tomato was first created in 1994 (Gupta, 2010) by the Californian Company Calgene (Bruening and Lyons, 2000), to solve the problem of tomatoes becoming soft too early. The tomato is also known as the CGN-89564-2 and is the ‘first commercially grown genetically engineered food to be granted a license for human consumption’ (RedOrbit, 2014).
Like every other living organism, tomatoes are made up of DNA. DNA genetically codes for everything that makes up a living organism, such the genes which code for our different traits. Firstly, there are a few basic genes that code for different traits of a tomato. There are different genes which affect the height of the plant; the colour of the leaves; the size of the leaves; the colour of the tomato; the size of the tomato; and the time it takes for the tomato to ripen. Some specific genes that are related to the Flavr Savr Tomato are polygalacturonase (Bruening and Lyons, 2000) which is inside the tomato and breaks down pectin in the cell wall of the tomato which causes it to soften up. Another gene which also affected the ripening of the tomato was 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) which produces a hormone called ethylene that triggers ripening of fruit. Anthocyanin is a pigment in the tomato which gives the tomatoes their red colour.
To create the Flavr Savr Tomato, different scientist used different ways. The first method was adding a second polygalacturonase gene into the tomato creating an antisense gene (RedOrbit, 2014) which in terms delays the production of the polygalacturonase enzyme and therefore delaying the ripening of the tomato. The second method used by scientists was reducing the amount of ACC, causing the ethyleve production to be prevented and also delaying the ripening of the tomato.
Mitosis is the process which grows, repairs, replaces and maintains the plant. The way mitosis would grow the Flavr Savr Tomato plant with the modified gene is that the gene would spread all around the tomato plant including the seed once it is inserted into the plant. So therefore the seed would already include the new gene of delayed ripening and mitosis would grow the tomatoes on the plant but would also ripen later.
Like every other living organism, tomatoes are made up of DNA. DNA genetically codes for everything that makes up a living organism, such the genes which code for our different traits. Firstly, there are a few basic genes that code for different traits of a tomato. There are different genes which affect the height of the plant; the colour of the leaves; the size of the leaves; the colour of the tomato; the size of the tomato; and the time it takes for the tomato to ripen. Some specific genes that are related to the Flavr Savr Tomato are polygalacturonase (Bruening and Lyons, 2000) which is inside the tomato and breaks down pectin in the cell wall of the tomato which causes it to soften up. Another gene which also affected the ripening of the tomato was 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) which produces a hormone called ethylene that triggers ripening of fruit. Anthocyanin is a pigment in the tomato which gives the tomatoes their red colour.
To create the Flavr Savr Tomato, different scientist used different ways. The first method was adding a second polygalacturonase gene into the tomato creating an antisense gene (RedOrbit, 2014) which in terms delays the production of the polygalacturonase enzyme and therefore delaying the ripening of the tomato. The second method used by scientists was reducing the amount of ACC, causing the ethyleve production to be prevented and also delaying the ripening of the tomato.
Mitosis is the process which grows, repairs, replaces and maintains the plant. The way mitosis would grow the Flavr Savr Tomato plant with the modified gene is that the gene would spread all around the tomato plant including the seed once it is inserted into the plant. So therefore the seed would already include the new gene of delayed ripening and mitosis would grow the tomatoes on the plant but would also ripen later.