They have fulfilled their dream: they have achieved the blue rose
2005/04/07 Galarraga Aiestaran, Ana - Elhuyar Zientzia
The photo we have done blue by computer, because we have not yet seen blue pink. But we will soon have occasion to do so. In fact, Australian and Japanese researchers have done what botanists wanted to get for a long time, the blue pink.
Traditional techniques have allowed to obtain roses of infinite colors, that is to say, crossing the roses of different colors, have achieved that their descendants are of another color. Thanks to this there are pink roses, red, yellow, orange... But the blue can not be achieved.
Now genetic transformation has done what seemed impossible. Using RNA technology, the gene encoding the enzyme dihydrofabonol of roses has been replaced by a gene equivalent to the same enzyme. It is the gene that gives the pigment of blue color. Thus, pink does not produce pink pigment, but blue.
This technique has been used for the first time in commercial plants. The substitution of genes is not easy. Normally genes are inactivated to make transgenic plants or others are introduced. This technology will allow the creation of new plants. On the other hand, for the display of blue roses on the market, they will spend at least three years.
