Nitrogen fertilizers, such as nitrate (NO3-) or ammonium (NH4 +), improve grain yield, but the use of great amounts of nitrogen leads to water and air pollution. The main cereals (such as rice and wheat) utilize only about 40% of the applied fertilizer – the rest is lost to the …
Genetically engineered (GE) maize is among the most extensively cultivated GM crops in more than 25 countries. There are also numerous publications in peer reviewed journals on its agro-environmental impact. Nevertheless, the benefits and risks related to GM maize cultivation are still being debated and concerns about safety remain. Scientists …
Water deficit significantly reduces growth and production of apples and is detrimental to the quality and size of the fruits. For this reason, water use efficiency is essential when growing apples. An apple tree of good agricultural quality must be able to efficiently use and transport water, which not only …
Photosynthesis is the process underlying all plant growth. Scientists aim to boost photosynthesis to meet the increasing global demand for food by engineering its key enzyme Rubisco. Now, researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry have succeeded in producing functional plant Rubisco in a bacterium. This allows genetic engineering …
Follow the Green G-Nome! In April 2017 EuropaBio published the new “The Green G-Nome’s Guide to GM Crops & Policies in the EU“, Copyright © 2017 EuropaBio. It is a must read for anyone wanting to understand the role and untapped potential of GM crops in Europe. Plant Biotechnology Information center-ABI …
Australian researchers have developed and grown modified Cavendish bananas resistant to the devastating soil-borne fungus Fusarium wilt tropical race 4 (TR4), also known as Panama disease. In a world-first GM field trial conducted in heavily TR4-infested soil, one Cavendish line transformed with a gene taken from a wild banana and …
The School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, the University of Hong Kong (HKU), in collaboration with the Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes (CNRS, Strasbourg, France), has identified a new strategy to simultaneously enhance health-promoting vitamin E by ~6-fold and double both provitamin A and lycopene contents in tomatoes, …
Potato is the fourth most widely consumed plant food by humans after rice, wheat and corn, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It is a staple food in some Asian, African and South American countries where there is a high incidence of vitamin A and vitamin E deficiencies. A …
Rutgers scientists have found an efficient way to enhance the nutritional value of corn by inserting a bacterial gene that causes it to produce a key nutrient called methionine, according to a new study published online today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The discovery could benefit millions …
The National Biosafety Authority of Kenya published in the Kenya Gazette issued by the Authority of the Republic of Kenya on the 8-th September 2017 under Gazzete Notice 8846 the list of approved GMO applications for the period 2016-2017. The list includes the approval for National Performance Trials targeting the …
