4 ms·

Do we still have the DNA of the original vine strand?

• littlecranky67 5y ago
  DNA wasn't known during the time of the roman empire (and a long time after that). Today we have seed banks built into permafrost close to the polar circle [0] for exactly that purpose (to store seeds for future generations) - the importance of which I only realized after hearing about sylphium [1] (an herb that was also extinct by the romans but was used as valuable medicine back then - its properties or studies might even benefit our modern society as its reported effects are still a mystery today). [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svalbard_Global_Seed_Vault https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svalbard_Global_Seed_Vault [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silphium https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silphium
  • littlecranky67 5y ago
    To add to this: Don't forget that all of our seeds today are the result of centuries of man-made breeding and selection processes. Mankind did selection and cultivation to achieve wanted properties (higher yields, resilience against plagues/insects, taste properties etc.) and todays strands of seeds are the result of this breeding - the value cannot be stressed enough. Best example is the grapefruit, a fruit that did not exist before the 18th century at which point it was the result of a cross-breed between an orange and a pomelo strain. It was deemed tasty, and that is the only reason why we still have it today.
    • tastyfreeze 5y ago
      Disease resistance and environment adaptation is why we need to continue to produce and collect seed as locally as possible. Another common plant that wouldn't exist without human intervention is what we know as strawberries. The garden strawberry is a cross of a North American and a Chilean Fragaria species. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strawberry https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strawberry