Japanese scientists say they have found a way to slow down the process of petal senescence by up to half, which means the bouquet can be kept longer. Researchers from Japan’s National Agriculture and Food Research Organization stated that they have discovered a gene that has been identified as a short-term gene responsible for flowers in various morning glory in Japan.
"Morning glory" its short-lived bloom is usually displayed every morning. By inhibiting the gene named EPHEMERAL1, the lifespan of each flower almost doubled. "The unmodified flowers begin to fade, 13 hours after they are open; but the flowers that have been genetically modified remain for 24 hours." This means that plants Fresh purple flowers bloom at the same time as pale flowers from the previous day. "Our conclusion is that genes are related to petal senescence, and this finding may lead to the development of methods to extend the lifespan of flowers." "It would be unrealistic to modify the genes of various types of flowers, but we can look for other ways to suppress The target gene, such as cut flower absorption fluid, prevents the gene from becoming active."
For some flowers, such as carnations, florists currently use chemicals to inhibit or promote flowering to maturity, such as ethylene, plant hormones, and so on. But ethylene does not participate in the preservation of some popular flowers such as lilies, tulips and pansies. But these flowers should have similar EPHEMERAL1 genes and may be responsible for the senescence of the petals of these plants, which means that suppressing it will increase its lifespan.