Now scientists create ‘notears’ onions

Scientists in New Zealand and Japan have created a 'tear-free' onion, using biotechnology to switch off the gene behind the enzyme that makes us cry. The research institute in New Zealand, Crop and Food, using gene silencing technology to make the breakthrough which it hopes could lead to a prototype onion hitting the market in a decade's time. Colin Eady, the institute's senior scientist, said that they had a gene silencing technology to insert DNA into onions. The technology creates a sequence that switches off the tear inducing genein the onion so it doesn't produce the enzyme. So when we slice the vegetable, it doesn't produce tears.

The Hindu, February 2^nd ൨൦൦൮

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