Disease Proof

According to Rosie Mestel of The Los Angeles Times scientists have unlocked the secret behind the orange in orange cauliflower. Check it out:

The gene enables the cauliflower to build up higher stores of beta-carotene, the precursor to vitamin A that gives carrots their distinctive hue. (Scientists have already figured out a way to engineer rice to be rich in beta-carotene, but that method's more cumbersome, involving several genes, and doesn't work in a lot of plants.) The original mutant orange cauliflower was discovered three decades ago in a farmer's field, according to a news release describing the finding, which was reported in the journal Plant Cell (which won't let you read all about it unless you pay, bah, humbug).

Okay, I’ve heard of purple cauliflower, but never orange. Here’s what one looks like:


And if you’re hungry more. Check out this article from Cornell University: Orange Cauliflower Developed at Cornell's Experiment Station is High in Vitamin A.