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While experimenting with weed genes that turned tomatoes dark green, geneticists accidentally discovered one of the reasons why today’s tomatoes lack taste.
基因學家在對使番茄呈墨綠色的基因進行實驗的過程中，意外發現了現今西紅柿乏味的另外一大原因。
Modern tomatoes are light green before they turn uniformly red.
現在的西紅柿在全部變紅之前是呈淺綠色的，
Surprisingly, the mutation that gives tomatoes uniform red color actually disables some of the ripening genes.
令人驚奇的是，讓番茄變紅的變異卻恰恰抑制了成熟基因的作用。
Those genes allow the fruit to make its own sugar which makes the tomato sweeter.
而成熟基因可以使水果產生糖分，從而使番茄變甜。
The genes also increase the amount of carotenoid pigments, which give tomatoes the red color.
同時產生更多的類胡蘿卜素，使番茄變紅。
When researchers turned the ripening genes back on, their experimental tomatoes had twenty percent more sugar and up to thirty percent more carotenoids.
當研究者們嘗試著將成熟基因恢復到原有數量后，他們的實驗番茄中所含的糖分增加了20%，類胡蘿卜素提高了30%。
Unfortunately, regulations prohibited researchers from tasting their experimental fruits, but you can try eating heirloom tomatoes.
遺憾的是，由于法規的原因，研究者們無法品嘗自己的實驗番茄，不過你們可以試著嘗嘗那些純天然的番茄。
Some varieties might not be pretty looking, but are tasty.
它們不中看，但是很好吃。
譯文為可可英語翻譯，未經授權請勿轉載!
