Blue petunias are a rarity in nature and a favorite among gardeners. Now, researchers say they have discovered the genetic glitch that produces the colored flowers.
In healthy petunias, a previously undiscovered “cellular pump” delivers high quantities of acid to special compartments in plant cells known as vacuoles, the researchers said. Composed of just two proteins working together, the pump is capable of delivering acid to a vacuole long after other pumps would stop, producing a highly acidic flower with a bright red-violet color.
But some petunias contain a mutation in the genes that carry the code for that pump, leaving it disabled. As a result, the petals don’t become very acidic, and turn blue instead of red. The study was published in the journal Cell Reports.
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