Scientists used CRISPR gene editing to disable a key enzyme in petunia flowers and discovered that disrupting one step in the color-making pathway unexpectedly shrinks flowers, reduces leaf mass, and lowers chlorophyll levels across the whole plant.
1
CRISPR disruption of DFR reduced floral dimensions by 20-40% and leaf biomass by 30-50%, revealing growth consequences beyond pigment loss.
2
Chlorophyll and carotenoid levels dropped 35-60% in petals of edited plants, and a key chlorophyll-synthesis gene (PORA) was suppressed by 60-75%.
3
Transcriptional profiling showed the competing enzyme flavonol synthase (FLS) increased nearly twofold while upstream pathway genes CHSA and CHIA were downregulated, indicating metabolic flux rerouting.
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