Landmark Photosynthesis Gene Discovery Boosts Plant Growth, Advances Crop Science
A novel gene, BOOSTER, enhances plants’ photosynthesis efficiency and productivity.
The Science
A team of scientists from two Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Centers identified a gene in poplar trees that enhances photosynthesis and can boost the height of trees by about 30% in the field and as much as 200% in a greenhouse. The gene, named BOOSTER, is a chimeric gene—one formed by the combination of other genes or parts of genes. The BOOSTER gene contains sequences from three originally separated genes and has been preserved in poplar trees with minimal change over evolutionary time. The gene plays an important role in photosynthesis, the process plants use to convert sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into glucose. Plants then use glucose to form cellulose, starch, and other molecules that become material we use for food and fuel.
The Impact
Scientists identified the natural novel gene, BOOSTER, in the black cottonwood tree, a type of poplar. This tree thrives from Baja California in Mexico into northern Canada. Researchers view it as a leading candidate for making biomass that can be converted into biofuels and other bioproducts. This variant gene can be bred naturally into black cottonwood and into commercial poplar hybrids. The gene also increased biomass when inserted into another plant, Arabidopsis, or thale cress. This result indicates that BOOSTER may increase yields from many commercial crops.
Summary
A team of scientists from two Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Centers — the Center for Bioenergy Innovation at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign — discovered the BOOSTER gene in a subpopulation of natural poplars of the species Populus trichocarpa. BOOSTER improves the ability of poplar to photosynthesize efficiently under varying light levels. When researchers created poplar trees with greater expression of the BOOSTER gene, the trees’ Rubisco content (an enzyme involved in photosynthesis) and subsequent photosynthetic activity soared.
The result was plants that were as much as 200% taller than unmodified poplars when grown in greenhouse conditions. The trees demonstrated up to 62% more Rubisco content and an approximate 25% increase in net leaf carbon dioxide uptake. In field conditions, scientists found that higher expression of BOOSTER resulted in poplar trees up to 37% taller, with as much as 88% more stem volume, increasing biomass per plant.
Contact
Gerald A. Tuskan
Center for Bioenergy Innovation
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
[email protected]
Steven Burgess
Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
[email protected]
Funding
The work was supported by the Center for Bioenergy Innovation and the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation, both Department of Energy Office of Science Bioenergy Research Centers supported by the Office of Science Biological and Environmental Research program.
Publications
Feyissa, B.A., et al., An orphan gene BOOSTER enhances photosynthetic efficiency and plant productivity. Developmental Cell 60, 5 (2025). [DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2024.11.002]
Related Links
Landmark photosynthesis gene discovery boosts plant height, advances crop science, Oak Ridge National Laboratory News
Researchers discover new photosynthesis gene that boosts plant height, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign News
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