Source:
Tim Lockette

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida researchers have found a gene that controls branching in plants, a discovery that could lead to a wide variety of applications, from fuller-flowering plants to better-tasting ears of corn.

A team of researchers found a genetic mutation in Arabidopsis plants that produce more branches than others of the same species.

The researchers say the mutation helped them pinpoint a gene, known by the name MAX3, which regulates the number of branches the plant produces. Though their work involved Arabidopsis, a small weed often used in plant experiments, the researchers say MAX3 genes can be used to regulate branching in any plant.

The finding opens the door to a wide variety of applications, said Harry Klee, an eminent scholar in the horticultural sciences department at UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

“The most obvious application would be in ornamentals,” said Klee. “One could alter various flowering plants or bushes to produce more branches, giving them a fuller appearance.”

Klee said the gene also could be used to alter trees that grow fewer branches and therefore produce more high-quality wood — a boon to the timber industry. In corn plants, he said, the gene could be used to stop the growth of unproductive shoots, allowing plants to focus more nutrients in ears of corn.

The findings of the team — which included Donald McCarty, a professor of horticultural science, and graduate student Michele Auldridge — are published in today’s issue of the journal Current Biology.

For more information, contact Klee at 352-392-8249; McCarty at 352-392-1928, ext. 322; or Auldridge at 352-846-2490.

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