In addition to being among his most vibrant and celebrated works, Vincent van Gogh's series of sunflower paintings also depict a mutation whose genetic basis has, until now, been a bit of a mystery.
In a study published today (March 29) in the journal PLoS Genetics, however, a team of University of Georgia scientists reveal the mutation behind the distinctive, thick bands of yellow "double flowers" that the post-Impressionist artist painted more than 100 years ago.
"In addition to being of interest from a historical perspective, this finding gives us insight into the molecular basis of an economically important trait," said senior author John Burke, professor of plant biology in the UGA Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. "You often see ornamental varieties similar to the ones van Gogh painted growing in people's gardens or used for cut flowers, and there is a major market for them."
The most common sunflower phenotype is a composite flower head that contains a single whorl of large, flattened, yellow ray florets on the outer perimeter and hundreds to over a thousand individual, tubular, disc florets that can produce seeds. The double-flowered mutants that van Gogh depicted in many of his paintings, on the other hand, have multiple bands of yellow florets and a much smaller proportion of internal disc florets.
To understand the genetic basis of this difference, Burke and his colleagues began by using the same plant crossing techniques that Gregor Mendel, a 19th century contemporary of van Gogh, used to lay the foundation of modern genetics. The scientists crossed the common, or wild type, variety of sunflower with the double-flowered variety, and their initial findings suggested that a single, dominant gene was responsible for creating the double-flowered mutation. Subsequent crosses of the offspring revealed that a second mutation, which is recessive to both the double-flowered mutation and the wild-type versi
'/>"/>
| Contact: John Burke jmburke@uga.edu 706-583-5511 University of Georgia Source:Eurekalert |
Related biology news :
1. Scientists win $2 million to study new pathway in development and maintenance of lymphoma
2. WileyChina.com - Now Featuring Bespoke Pages for China’s Life Scientists
3. Salk scientists open new window into how cancers override cellular growth controls
4. Scientists discover new method of proton transfer
5. Brandeis scientists win prestigious prize for circadian rhythms research
6. American Society of Plant Biologists honors early career women scientists
7. Scientists produce eye structures from human blood-derived stem cells
8. Queens scientists seek vaccine for Pseudomonas infection
9. Stanford scientists develop gene therapy approach to grow blood vessels in ischemic limbs
10. A*STAR scientists make groundbreaking discovery on stem cell regulation
11. Scripps Florida scientists awarded $3 million to develop new, more effective pain treatments
 |
| Copyright © 2003-2012 Bio-Medicine. All rights reserved. ABOUT | CONTACT US | DISCLAIMER | PRIVACY POLICY | TERMS AND CONDITIONS |  |