Publication in Plant Physiology

Magnesium (Mg) and calcium (Ca) are essential nutrients for plants and animals. Human deficiencies of these elements are not uncommon. In our recent paper Magnesium and calcium overaccumulate in the leaves of a schengen3 mutant of Brassica rapa, the elemental composition of a mutagenized population of Brassica rapa was measured and a line carrying a recessive mutation that led to an elevated accumulation of Mg in most tissues, as well as elevated levels of Ca was identified. The mutation was mapped to a region corresponding to the SHENGEN3 (SGN3) gene, which was previously characterized in Arabidopsis as contributing to the formation of the impermeable Casparian strip barrier at the root endodermis, with sgn3 mutants having a “leaky” endodermis with increased Mg and Ca accumulation in leaves. These finding can be used to develop non-GMO foods with enhanced levels of Mg and Ca. F2 colleagues Paula Pongrac, Katarina Vogel-Mikuš and Mitja Kelemen were contributing to the article.