Smart packaging from corn extends food shelf life

Researchers from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, US, successfully designed a new packaging material that is biodegradable, sustainable, and kills harmful microbes. Their study is published in ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces journal. The natural food packaging is made from a type of …

Drought-tolerant soybean performs better at major plant stages

Most studies on drought-tolerant genetically modified (GM) plants are done to document how such tolerance occurs during the plants’ vegetative stage. However, a team of scientists decided to broaden their study and observe drought tolerance in GM soybean plants at seedling, vegetative and reproductive phases. Results showed that the GM …

Sweeter tomatoes developed through gene editing

Researchers from Nagoya University reported that they have successfully developed sweeter tomatoes using gene editing technology. The results are published in Scientific Reports. High-sugar content tomatoes are usually expensive in the market because of the extensive process needed to achieve the sweetness, which also reduces the size of the fruits. …

Plant-based jet fuel could reduce emissions by 68%

Research from the University of Georgia led by scientist Puneet Dwivedi has found that replacing petroleum-based aviation fuel with sustainable fuel from a type of mustard plant can reduce carbon emissions by up to 68 percent. Researches rteam estimated the break-even price and life cycle carbon emissions of sustainable aviation …

Breakthrough to help coconut propagation and conservation

Scientists at KU Leuven and the Alliance of Bioversity International and International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) have developed a method to multiply coconut trees faster and conserve coconut genetic resources more efficiently in gene banks. Drawing inspiration from banana research, Bart Panis (KU Leuven Laboratory for Tropical Crop Improvement/the …

Genetic engineering and beetroot dye tomatoes purple

Scientists at the Leibniz Institute for Plant Biochemistry (IPB) in Halle have used genetic engineering methods to produce purple tomatoes using dye from beetroot. The scientists smuggled the genes for the biosynthesis of betanin into the plants and activated them in the ripening fruits. Betanin is not originally formed in …