Researchers Create Plant that Grows Fast and Defends Itself from Insects
September 7, 2016| |
A team of researchers from Michigan State University (MSU) has developed a plant that can outgrow and outcompete its neighbors for light, and defend itself against insects and disease.
Led by Gregg Howe, MSU Foundation professor of biochemistry and molecular biology, the team modified an Arabidopsis plant by "knocking out" both a defense hormone repressor and a light receptor in the plant. This genetic alteration allowed the plant to grow faster and defend itself from insects at the same time.
In plants, more growth equals less defense, and more defense equals less growth, but Howe said that their "genetic trickery" can get a plant to do both. If the results of this breakthrough can be replicated in crop plants, the work could have direct benefits for farmers trying to feed a world population that is expected to reach nine billion by the year 2050.
For more details, read the news release at MSU Today.
| |
Biotech Updates is a weekly newsletter of ISAAA, a not-for-profit organization. It is distributed for free to over 22,000 subscribers worldwide to inform them about the key developments in biosciences, especially in biotechnology. Your support will help us in our mission to feed the world with knowledge. You can help by donating as little as $10.
-
See more articles:
-
News from Around the World
- FAO and WFP Leaders Urged by Pope Francis to Continue Efforts to Combat Hunger
- Youth Learn about Biotech at the AgriKool Expo in Uganda
- Scientists Reveal Genetic Ancestry of Cultivated Strawberry
- Improved Procedure Accelerates Tomato Engineering
- Researchers Create Plant that Grows Fast and Defends Itself from Insects
- Australian OGTR Invites Comments for Commercial Release of GM Cotton
- Biotech Mustard is Safe, Says India's Technical Committee
- Study Reports that Plants are Adapting to Increasing Atmospheric CO2
- VIB Fact Series on Bananas and GM Food Safety Released
-
Research Highlights
- HT Soybean (DAS-44406-6) Grown in Brazil is Compositionally Equivalent to Non-GM Soybean
- Plant Defensin from Alfalfa Confers Resistance to Leaf Rust in Transgenic Wheat
-
Beyond Crop Biotech
- Australian Scientists Decode Clover DNA
- Researchers Evaluate Health of Transgenic Donor Pigs Expressing Five Human Genes
-
Announcements
- BIO-Europe
-
Plant
- Agrobacterium-delivered CRISPR/Cas9 for Targeted Mutagenesis in Maize
-
Read the latest: - Biotech Updates (September 11, 2024)
- Gene Editing Supplement (September 11, 2024)
- Gene Drive Supplement (February 22, 2023)
-
Subscribe to BU: - Share
- Tweet