Pigment found in beets linked to plants' adaptation to harsh environments
A University of Michigan study links the red pigment betalain in beets to the evolution of drought tolerance in flowering plants. This pigment likely enabled plants to develop water-storing traits, allowing them to survive in harsh, arid environments.
Why it matters
Understanding how plants adapt to extreme climates is essential for agricultural resilience in the face of global climate change.
edited by Sadie Harley , reviewed by Robert Egan
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Add as preferred source Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain The pigments that give beets their red color may have helped a major group of flowering plants repeatedly adapt to dry environments, setting the stage for the evolution of traits that allowed plants to adapt to some of the harshest environments on Earth, according to a University of Michigan study.
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