Plants Go into Photosynthesis 'Beast Mode' After Gene Mutation: New Study

Photosynthesis is a fundamentally important process since it allows plants to take carbon dioxide from the air, through sunlight, and turn it into oxygen and other chemicals.

Without the said process, the carbon-oxygen cycle will not take place and oxygen-dependent living organisms will not survive in a world depleted of the life-sustaining chemical elements.

In a new study, plants experienced a so-called photosynthesis "beast mode" after scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (WISC) in the United States altered their genes during experimental research.

The altered gene led to a gene mutation in plants, enabling them to absorb more carbon dioxide than normal plants and generate useful compounds which are still theoretically beneficial for both humans and plants.

While the breakthrough study is still at its infancy, the discovery that plants can increase or intensify the process of photosynthesis may have implications in future research, especially in the fields of botany, chemistry, and genetic engineering.

Furthermore, the wider implications of the discovery are still unclear but it can potentially be used for manufacturing plant-based medications and other purpose for the environment.

Aromatic Compounds

(Photo : Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

According to a new study published in the journal Science Advances on Wednesday, June 8, WISC researchers focused on "point mutations" which boosts aromatic amino acid production and carbon dioxide assimilation among plants.

The significant aspect of the study lies not entirely on the capability of the genetically-mutated plants to conduct high-level photosynthesis but rather the chemical compounds they produce called aromatic compounds.

The study highlights the importance of these aromatic compounds, which have been found mostly from fossil fuels and are general scarce.

These compounds have been considered to be the most basic element for useful medication like aspirin and morphine.

Also known as "mono- and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons," aromatic compounds are also reportedly used for other drugs, disinfectants, explosives, plastics, and cleaners.

Also Read: Tree Growth is Not Entirely Dependent on Photosynthesis: New Study

Mutated Genes

To achieve the photosynthesis beast mode, the scientists attempted to conduct a gene mutation process of plants by identifying first the suppressor of tyra2 (sota) mutations.

The sota mutations is known for deregulating the initial step in the so-called plant's "shikimate pathway" and this was done by removing the controlled feedback regulation in the Thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana) plant.

The approach toward the sota mutations came due to the existing problem encountered by scientists as to how plants control the shikimate pathway.

According to Hiroshi Maeda, a botany professor at WISC, the research team has long been interested in the shikimate pathway or the "aromatic amino acid pathway" since it is one of the most important plant pathways, as cited by Phys.org.

Maeda adds that such pathways convert carbon fixed, through photosynthesis, into food, fuels, medicines, and other materials.

The shikimate pathway serves as a connection between the metabolism of carbohydrates to biosynthesis of aromatic compounds, according to a separated study in the journal Annual Review of Plant Physiology and Plant Molecular Biology in 1999.

Related Article: Scientists Want to Improve Photosynthesis, but is That a Good Idea?