Juicy red tomatoes are not just pleasing to the eyes and our taste buds, a team of scientists in Brazil and Ireland are now trying bioengineering to use tomatoes for more.
A latest research paper has discussed the potential of tomatoes as a biofactory to produce capsaicinoids. You probably know that capsaicinoids are found abundantly in capsicum and chilli peppers and lend spiciness to cuisines. What’s interesting is that capsaicinoids are used for manufacturing pain-killers, specifically for arthritis patients and have little or no side effects. But growing peppers requires a lot of effort.
On the other hand, tomatoes are not only comparatively easier to grow but also have the model organism and genes that can be manipulated easily to grow capsaicinoids.
This finding has potential industrial and pharmaceutical application so it is a big thing in the making. Read what Ryan F. Mandelbaum has reported on this.
Image credit: Image credit: Photo: Karl Thomas Moore (Wikimedia Commons)