On 16 October 2002, Plant Research International employee Asaph Aharoni graduated cum laude PhD for his research into the production of flavours and fragrances in strawberry. In his promotional studies, Asaph Aharoni discovered a gene that plays a crucial role in the creation of these compounds. Aharoni’s work also made an important contribution to the development of ‘metabolomics’ as a research strategy and technique.

Hundreds of genes are involved in the creation of the characteristic smell and taste of the strawberry. At Plant Research International, Asaph Aharoni explored the genes playing a role in the creation of these compounds. Using DNA micro-array techniques, he studied the activity of 1700 genes during the fruit ripening phase.

Among Aharoni’s discoveries was a gene that proved to be important for the smell and taste of strawberries. This gene was called the SAAT gene. This gene is responsible for the production of an enzyme (alcohol acyltransferase), which is responsible for the creation of different esters in the strawberry. These esters are important flavours and fragrances in numerous fruits.

In his PhD-research, Aharoni showed that the integration of new functional genomic techniques are important both for finding unknown genes as well as understanding the biological processes. What is extraordinary is the fact that he did not make use of a model plant such as the frequently applied thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana) but instead chose the strawberry, a plant of economic importance.

In getting to the bottom of the biological processes involved in the creation of aromatic substances and flavourings, Aharoni also used techniques such as sequencing active genes (EST’s: Expressed Sequence Tags), and the large-scale analysis of metabolites (metabolomics) as well as DNA micro-array technology. Aharoni is the first researcher in the Netherlands to have applied this combination of techniques on plants. Only a small number of research groups in the world have been successful in using this new approach, although more groups are now taking it up.