Re: [CH] question for a big brain

Dave Anderson (Chilehead@tough-love.com)
Tue, 14 Aug 2001 18:40:15 -0700 

If I put on my white lab coat and labor in my gene splicing lab to do 
something with a pepper, I'm going to spend the large sums of 
money on something that brings me a big-time return on my 
investment. I'm going to try to get more tonnage per acre or 
hectare, or I'm going to try to get a plant that will continue to 
produce in higher or lower temperatures (or both), Or I'm going to 
try to get a bigger bell, or a thicker skinned bell, or a different 
colored bell. I'm not going to go for a hotter pepper because there's 
simply not enough of a market for it. If a hotter pepper than Red 
Savina Habanero comes along, it will probably be a sport found in 
Jim Campbell's pepper patch:-)

> Can't wait to hear what the neo-luddites have to say about this!
> 
> In theory it should be possible, however because CAP isn't a protein it would
> require identification of multiple genes coding for the various enzymes used by
> the plant to synthesize CAP.  Sounds like a lot of work to produce a funny
> shaped Poblano.
> 
> A super chile should be easier since only one gene might require modification.
> The fact that no one has done it yet suggests that even this isn't easy.  I
> would have thought that the red savina mutation should make identification (as
> opposed to working out how make it even 'better') of the gene relatively easy -
> maybe the red savina owners have the intellectual property sewn up.
> 
> regards
> 
> Neale
> (fireworksfoods.com.au)
> 
> jocelyn berg wrote:
> 
> > Hi again, I have another question regarding CAP. I was wondering if it was a
> > particular gene that made peppers produce CAP and if we could add this gene
> > to... lets say tomatos to produce a pretty hot tomato, or tomatoes of
> > different Hot levels. Also, if there are different genes from one type of
> > pepper to another, maybe it would be possible to combine all these genes
> > that produce CAP to create a supper pepper....

Dave Anderson
Tough Love Chile Co.
Http://www.tough-love.com