/oss/taxonomy/term/1915/all en /oss/article/did-you-know/eggplants-contain-nicotine <p>Eggplant seeds (and they have many) <a href="http://www.latimes.com/sns-dailymeal-1813110-healthy-eating-eggplant-contains-nicotine-it-addictive-20170925-story.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">contain nicotinoid alkaloids</a>, which are responsible for the slightly bitter taste of the purple <a href="/oss/article/did-you-know/bananas-are-berries-raspberries-are-not" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">berry</a>. The concentration of nicotine itself is about 100 nanograms per gram of eggplant, compared with 2 milligrams of nicotine per cigarette.</p> Thu, 08 Feb 2018 15:18:47 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD and Ada McVean, OSS Intern 6918 at /oss /oss/article/controversial-science-environment-food-health-news-technology/seeds-hope <p>Why would anyone oppose a technology that dramatically increases crop yields and protects farmers from excessive exposure to pesticides? Because of irrational fears about the technology involved, which is of course genetic modification. A battle is now brewing in India and Bangladesh over the planting of eggplant that has been genetically modified to resist attack by insects. Eggplant is a staple in many dishes in India and Bangladesh but unfortunately the plant is susceptible to attack by the fruit and shoot borer and farmers have to spray to prevent infestation on a regular basis.</p> Fri, 21 Nov 2014 22:30:47 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2214 at /oss