World's First True Blue Rose, Thanks to Biotech

FiReaNGeL writes "Researchers from CSRIO achieved the holy grail of rose breeders since 1840 - breeding a blue rose. Using RNAi technology, they knocked down the red pigment gene and introduced a blue pigment producing one. The result is the world's first true blue rose - no word about whether it'll be commercially available or not. A factsheet describing the technique and a detailed summary are available."

Comments

A rose by any other genetic code...

[crow]

If they've genetically modified it, is it still a rose?

Re:A rose by any other genetic code...

[hey!]

The way of talking about this that is in current vogue among biologists seems to be "cladistic analysis". All life forms are classified in a tree structure representing evolutionary pedigree. This is probably a gross simplification, but every genetic innovation creates a new branch (or clades). Some would argue that traditional taxonomic categories like genera and species are meaningless.

If you replace the red gene with a blue gene, you have developed a new clades. It is still substantially a rose, whether or not it smell sweet. Of course your mom might not call this thing a rose if it smelled like a skunk, so YMMV.

oh really?

[St. Arbirix]

I guess that puts us just that much closer to authentic blue hair.

I need them now!

[L. VeGas]

I want some blue roses for a red lady.

How I long for the Blues...

[Dark Coder]

Where's the picture? Is this a Vaporware Gene?

Re:How I long for the Blues...

[HavokDevNull]

picture here Florigene LTD

Roses are red...

[joelparker]

Violets are blue Now thanks to biotech Roses are too

Here!

[PhilHibbs]

http://www.physorg.com/news3581.html

Re:Here!

[PhilHibbs]

Probably a fake, though, considering this says copyright 2003

Poster hasn't RTFA

[SCull]

no word about whether it'll be commercially available or not.

Go back and RTFA:

Commercial availability

Florigene has already successfully created blue carnations using gene technology and these have been available in Australia since 1996.

It will be at least 3 years before blue roses will be commercially available in Australia, pending approval from the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator for their commercial release.

Re:So not really the "Holy Grail"

[gl4ss]

and marathon runners would consider using a car cheating.

yet, if you're not doing it just for the sport(breeders aren't) then whatever gets the job done is the smart choice.

So, what does a blue rose symbolize anyway?

[acidblue]

I think we should have a vote on this one. How about: 1) "Have a bad day" 2) "I'm breaking up with you" 3) "This rose cost a sh** load of cash, you better like it" 4) "I still don't want to marry you, so instead of a ring..." 5) "I am red/blue colorblind and I still don't care about roses"

Re:So, what does a blue rose symbolize anyway?

[acidblue]

(I reformatted it, sorry about that) I think we should have a vote on this one.

How about:

1. "Have a bad day"
2. "I'm breaking up with you"
3. "This rose cost a sh** load of cash, you better like it"
4. "I still don't want to marry you, so instead of a ring..."
5. "I am red/blue colorblind and I still don't care about roses"

Re:So, what does a blue rose symbolize anyway?

[Mastoid]

"I read too damn much David Eddings."

not real

[boarder]

That pic is probably not real, as TFA specifically says:

"although the prototype is pale mauve, it is the first rose in the world with the genetic potential to produce 'true blue' roses, spanning the spectrum from palest blue to Mediterranean blue, or even navy blue."

and this:

"The new rose is an attractive shade of mauve, similar to the current generation of mauve-lilac roses like 'Blue Moon' and 'Vol de Nuit'. But where these cultivars express cyanidin, and are thus incapable of yielding blue flowers, the new rose, with further 'tweaking', has the genetic potential to be truly blue.

Blue shades should be achievable if Florigene and Suntory researchers can make the rose's petals less acidic. Rose petals are moderately acidic, with a pH around 4.5, while carnation petals are less so, with a pH of 5.5."

So unless this story is old and that picture is really new, I'm guessing it is fake or just an "artist's conception."

Re:Sorry sorry, had to :_(

[Xiver]

Roses are blue
violets are green
in Soviet Russia
..oh I give up someone finish this one off for me

1. poems are incomplete?
2. peasants are lean?
3. poems finish you?
4. poets are mean?
5. chernobyl flowers smell you?
6. Genetics inherit you?
7. Profit?

The perfect gift

[NarcolepticTerrorPoo]

...for you girlfriend with breast implants.

This blue rose reminds me of you,
Beautiful and artificial.

Re:Not really a rose...

[sagekoala06]

as someone who actually works in a fish store ... let me assure you if one more person asks for the fish that "glows in the dark" I'm going to explode into a zillion little bitty pieces. AFAIK The reason you never actually see them is that the company who made them only released one sex of them and then only 500,000 were sold to the public. Its amazing how someone can take the cheapest fish we sell (zebra danio, $0.79) and charge all the way up to $15 for it. I don't even think they intended to sell them, it just just to work on the technology ... but suprise there was a demand so they thought they would get some of their investment back. I digress, you're right ... this thing will probably be big ... for a while until the novelty wears off, then it will just be another color of rose.

The modifications are NOT permenent!

[clonan]

They use siRNA to turn off the color genes.

SiRNA is a RNA that is maintained by the host completly seperate from the genome. It happens to compliment the RNA of the target gene and therefore inhibits expression.

SiRNA is not stable long term. THese roses will slowly revert to the original levels of Red/Orange with blue tossed in as well.

To make this permenent you will need to deactivate the color genes on the genome level rather than the cytoplasmic/transcription level.

Re:The modifications are NOT permenent!

[FiReaNGeL]

It depends. If you transfect a stable, integrated form of siRNA, you get permanent effects. Its easy to do; all you need is a "gene" coding for an hairpin corresponding to both siRNA strands.

Oh and I added a picture of the roses, for all those who wanted to see it.

Re:The modifications are NOT permenent!

[clonan]

siRNA is straight forward competitive inhibition.

It works because it is cheap and fast to do.

I did not intend to say that the siRNA sequence will no longer become functional, rather the blue rose will not breed true.

Since the original colors genes are still intact AND stil expressed, once the siRNA is removed (say through breeding) the colors will once again appear.

The ONLY way to make this line breed true (and therefore become a strain) is to either knock out the colors or prevent expression....it looks like knocking out the "Rose DFR gene" would do it.

detailed summary

[majid_aldo]

the technique and a detailed summary are available."

a summary with detail huh?