WOX9 Groundcherry (IMAGE) Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Caption In tomatoes, a developmental gene called WOX9 produces flowers. However, this gene's role was unknown in groundcherries, a close relative to the tomato plant, with sweet and sour fruit. Using the genome-editing tool CRISPR to change when, where, or how much WOX9 is made, flowering can also be increased in the groundcherry, as pictured here. The red arrows point to extra flower branches when compared to the original plant. Credit Hendelman/Lippman lab/CSHL, 2021 Usage Restrictions Attribution required License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.