Sunday Evening News 441 - Week 37 - 2025
Weekly report on genetic engineering, genome editing, biotechnology and legal regulation.
September 2025-09-08 - September 2025-09-14
Meetings – Conferences / Treffen - Veranstaltungen
EU-SAGE, Re-Imagine Europa, GAIN4CROPS: Innovating Agriculture: How New Genomic Techniques Can Boost
Sustainability in Europe, September 18th, 2025 16:00 - 17:00 CEST - Online Webinar
Dialogforum WISSENSWERTE, Berlin; 29.09.2025 – 01.10.2025
Anmelden:
https://app.guestoo.de/public/event/87e17463-6467-4b94-8fb7-82ea4f8baacc?lang=de
13. November 2025, 13:00 – 18:00 Uhr Frankfurt/Main DECHEMA-Haus
Registrierung: www.gdch.de/pflanzenschutz2025
EMBO Workshop: Plant evolution: from origins to diversification on land, 25 – 27 November 2025 | Vienna, Austria
https://meetings.embo.org/event/25-plant-evolution
Press Releases - Media / Presse- und Medienberichte
STRATEGIC RESEARCH & INNOVATION AGENDA - Plants for the Future ETP
https://www.plantetp.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/plant-etp-sria-interactive.pdf
Gene tech and organics want the same thing
https://www.farmersweekly.co.nz/opinion/gene-tech-and-organics-want-the-same-thing/
IFOAM: Trilogue negotiations on the “New Genomic Techniques” proposal continue: No viable pathway forward without
addressing the traceability, labelling and patent issues, organic sector warns
IVA: Nahrungsmittelsouveränität unter Druck - Risiken durch ausgewählte klimabedingte und regulatorische
Restriktionen
https://www.iva.de/themen-positionen/nahrungsmittelsouveraenitaet
Only some selected press releases or media reports are listed here. The daily up-date of the press releases
and media reports are ►here: September week 37
Publications – Publikationen
Singer A.D. and Michoud D. (2025): The current regulatory status of biotechnologically bred crops in Canada and beyond.
Genome |https://doi.org/10.1139/gen-2025-0008
Crop breeding, which relies on the presence and/or generation of alterations in DNA, has been essential to the development of agricultural production. Such breeding endeavours are carried out using a wide range of methods, which have diversified immensely over the years as our understanding of genetics has grown. While this expansion in our breeding “toolbox” has provided vast improvements in the specificity, pace and effectiveness of crop trait enhancement, apprehension surrounding the use of biotechnological breeding platforms in particular led countries to develop costly and lengthy regulatory processes for plants deemed to be “genetically modified” as a means of managing safety concerns and assuaging public unease. In this article, we discuss crop regulatory policies in Canada and beyond, in the context of transgenic crops, as well as those developed using newer biotechnological breeding platforms such as gene editing. We also examine the benefits of biotechnologically bred crops, and consider the broader socio-economic, ethical, and environmental impacts of overly restrictive regulatory frameworks, which could very feasibly limit the prospect of food security in the future.
https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full/10.1139/gen-2025-0008
Yu Wang Y., Phelps A., Godbehere A, Evans B. et al. (2025): Revolutionizing Agriculture With CRISPR Technology:
Applications, Challenges, and Future Perspectives. Biotechnology J. | https://doi.org/10.1002/biot.70113
CRISPR technologies are rapidly transforming agriculture by enabling precise and programmable modifications across a wide range of organisms. This review provides an overview of CRISPR applications in crops, livestock, aquaculture, and microbial systems, highlighting key advances in sustainable agriculture. In crops, CRISPR has accelerated the improvement of traits such as drought tolerance, nutrient efficiency, and pathogen resistance. In livestock and aquaculture, CRISPR has enabled disease-resistant pigs and poultry, hornless cattle, and fast-growing, stress-tolerant fish. Engineered microbes are also being leveraged to enhance nitrogen fixation and reduce input reliance. We examine the evolution of CRISPR tools, such as base and prime editing, multiplex editing, and epigenome modulation, that expand precision and control beyond traditional gene knockouts. These innovations offer significant advantages over conventional breeding, yet challenges remain, including off-target effects, delivery efficiency, and regulatory variability across countries. The review also explores emerging directions such as novel Cas variants and AI-integrated breeding platforms for high-throughput trait discovery. Together, these developments demonstrate the transformative potential of CRISPR technology to reshape agriculture, not only by enhancing productivity and resilience but also by reducing environmental impacts. With responsible implementation, CRISPR-enabled innovations are well-positioned to support global food security and sustainability targets by 2050.
https://analyticalsciencejournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/biot.70113
Kendig & Thompson (eds) (2025): The Social Epistemology of Engineered Agricultural Ecologies
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-04450-1
McLaughlin J.E., Kue Foka I.C., Lawton M.A., Di R. (2025): CRISPR activation: identifying and using novel genes for plant
disease resistance breeding. Front. Genome Ed. 7, 1596600 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fgeed.2025.1596600
CRISPR-based technologies have revolutionized plant science by enabling precise modulation of gene function, including CRISPR activation (CRISPRa), a recently emerging strategy which shows particular promise for enhancing disease resistance through targeted gene upregulation. Unlike conventional CRISPR editing, which introduces double-stranded DNA breaks and permanent genomic changes, CRISPRa employs a deactivated Cas9 (dCas9) fused to transcriptional activators. This system allows quantitative and reversible gene activation without altering the DNA sequence, offering a gain-of-function (GOF) like enhanced blight resistance in staple crops. Despite its potential, the limited adoption of CRISPRa in plant biology to date underscores the need for future studies to fully harness its capabilities for crop improvement. This review addresses the groundbreaking and relatively underexplored potential of CRISPR activation (CRISPRa) systems for GOF studies in plant biology, and advocates for the adoption of CRISPRa to discover and harness genetic variation for enhancing disease resistance. We present recent advancements in CRISPRa technology, emphasizing its successful application in boosting plant immunity. Moreover, we discuss the synergistic potential of integrating CRISPRa with functional genomics tools such as genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and multi-omics approaches to identify and characterize key resistance genes. Additionally, we highlight ongoing progress in developing plant-specific programmable transcriptional activators (PTAs) to optimize CRISPRa efficiency. Challenges associated with achieving transgene-free overexpression and the deployment of alternative CRISPR systems are also explored. Together, these advances position CRISPRa as a transformative tool for future crop breeding strategies aimed at achieving durable, broad-spectrum disease resistance and sustainability in agriculture.
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/genome-editing/articles/10.3389/fgeed.2025.1596600/full
Jiang L., Adcock M., Yang H. (2025): To patent or not to patent: challenges and solutions to the patent ban on new genomic
techniques plant in EU. GM CROPS & FOOD, 16 (1), 562–574 | https://doi.org/10.1080/21645698.2025.2548638
The Proposal for a new Regulation on plants produced by certain new genomic techniques (NGTs) embraces the deregulation of NGT plants but introduces a patent ban on them. This move has generated significant legal uncertainties and has become the focal point of a broader debate over the patentability of NGT plants. In reviewing the rationale and challenges underlying the patent ban, this article argues that the abandonment of patents diverges from established expectations. Introducing a new complete patent ban is likely to lead to several adverse consequences, including challenges related to justification, implementation, and innovation. Instead of radically altering the NGT plant patent framework, more practical and balanced alternatives within existing patent system – such as the establishment of a patent-clearing platform, the adoption of a compulsory licensing model and the creation of a labeling and traceability system – may offer more effective solutions.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/21645698.2025.2548638#abstract
Mishra, G. (2025): Revolution and advances in gene editing and genomics technology for developing climate-resilient
legume crops: developments and prospects. Plant Mol Biol 115, 106 | https://doi.org/10.1007/s11103-025-01637-y
Legumes are essential for agriculture and food security. Biotic and abiotic stresses pose significant challenges to legume production, lowering productivity levels. Most legumes must be genetically improved by introducing alleles that give pest and disease resistance, abiotic stress adaptability, and high yield potential. The quickest way to develop high-yielding elite legume varieties with long-lasting resistance is to tap into potential resistance alleles present in landraces and wild relatives and exploit them in legume resistance breeding programs using next-generation molecular breeding methods. Most of the reviews focus on the advancements made by genome editing technologies in generating climate-tolerant legumes for breeding. This review discusses the challenges of genome-based editing tools and how the integration of other popular breeding methodologies, such as QTLs and GWAS, as well as computational techniques, can aid in the development of climate-tolerant legume crops. This review highlights genomics-based methodologies and recent advances that make it easier to assess genetic diversity and uncover adaptive genes in legumes. Computational approaches, such as machine learning, are important in mining the breeding-related genes identified by CRISPR and other genomic tools, as well as detecting the key elements and factors that regulate the expression of these genes, which addresses the challenge of developing climate-resilient legume crops.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11103-025-01637-y
Seluzicki, A., Chory, J. (2025): Genetic architecture of a light-temperature coincidence detector. Nat Commun 16, 7947 |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-62194-y
Light and temperature variations are inescapable in nature. These signals provide daily and seasonal information, guiding life history determinations across many taxa. Here we show that signals from the PHOTOTROPIN2 (PHOT2) blue photoreceptor combine with low temperature information to control flowering. Plants lacking PHOT2 flower later than controls when grown in low ambient temperature. This phenotype requires blue light, is blocked by removal of NON-PHOTOTROPIC HYPOCOTYL 3 (NPH3), and is recapitulated by removing the transcription factor CAMTA2. PHOT2 and CAMTA2 show non-additive genetic interactions in phenotype and gene expression. Network-based co-expression analysis indicates system-level control of key growth modules by PHOT2 and CAMTA2. CAMTA2 is required for low temperature up-regulation of EHB1, a known NPH3-interacting protein, providing a potential mechanism of temperature information input to the PHOT-NPH3 blue light signaling system. Together these data describe the genetic architecture of environmental signal integration in this blue light-low temperature coincidence detection module.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-62194-y
Zhu P., Weber B., Rosenkranz M., Polle A. et al. (2025): Volatile-Mediated Plant Defense Networks: Field Evidence for
Isoprene as a Short-Distance Immune Signal. Plant, Cell & Environment | https://doi.org/10.1111/pce.70153
Isoprene, the most abundant biogenic hydrocarbon in the atmosphere, is known to protect photosynthesis from abiotic stress and significantly impact atmospheric chemistry. While laboratory studies show that isoprene can enhance plant immunity, its role in plant-plant communication under natural field conditions remains unclear. In a 2-year field experiment, we used wild-type and transgenic silver birch (Betula pendula) lines with enhanced isoprene emission levels to examine their impact on neighboring Arabidopsis thaliana, including wild-type and immune signaling mutants (llp1: legume lectin-like protein 1; jar1: jasmonate resistant 1). Receiver plants exposed to higher isoprene levels showed increased resistance to Pseudomonas syringae, independent of jasmonate signaling but dependent on LLP1, a protein essential for systemic acquired resistance. Volatile analysis indicated isoprene as an airborne molecule that can also trigger an immune response in neighboring plants along with other terpenoids. Our study using transgenic birches in a complex environment provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying plant volatile perception and expands our understanding of plant chemical communication in terrestrial ecosystems.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pce.70153
Rohde A., Albertsen M.C., Boden S.A., Bansept-Basler P. et al. (2025): New genomic resources to boost research in
reproductive biology to enable cost-effective hybrid seed production. The Plant Genome, 18, e70092. https://doi.org/10.1002/tpg2.70092
The commercial realization of hybrid wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a major technological challenge to sustainably increase food production for our growing population in a changing climate. Despite recent advances in cytoplasmic- and nuclear-based pollination control systems, the inefficient outcrossing of wheat's autogamous florets remains a barrier to hybrid seed production. There is a pressing need to investigate wheat floral biology and enhance the likelihood of ovaries being fertilized by airborne pollen so breeders can select and utilize male and female parents for resilient, scalable, and cost-effective hybrid seed production. Advances in understanding the wheat genomes and pangenome will aid research into the underlying floral organ development and fertility with the aim to stabilize pollination and fertilization under a changing climate. The purpose of this position paper is to highlight priority areas of research to support hybrid wheat development, including (1) structural aspects of florets that affect stigma presentation, longevity, and receptivity to airborne pollen, (2) pollen release dynamics (e.g., anther extrusion and dehiscence), and (3) the effect of heat, drought, irradiation, and humidity on these reproductive traits. A combined approach of increased understanding built on the genomic resources and advanced trait evaluation will deliver to robust measures for key floral characteristics, such that diverse germplasm can be fully exploited to realize the yield improvements and yield stability offered by hybrids.
Cao X., Bai S, Li J., Sun Y. (2025): A simple and efficient system for evaluating plant genome editing efficiency and its
application in optimizing the ISAam1 TnpB nuclease. Front. Plant Sci. 16:1620874 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2025.1620874
Genome editing technology has revolutionized plant genetic breeding. However, Significant variability in editing activity has been observed across different genome editing systems and target sites, highlighting the importance of developing efficient evaluation systems for assessing genome editing efficiency in plants. In this study, we developed a simple, rapid, and efficient system based on hairy root transformation to evaluate somatic genome editing efficiency in plants. This system is easy to implement, does not require sterile conditions, and enables visual identification of transgenic hairy roots within two weeks. We first validated the system using the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing platform, confirming its effectiveness. Subsequently, we applied this system to assess the somatic editing activity of the recently identified ISAam1 TnpB nuclease, which show considerable promise for plant genome editing applications. Furthermore, through protein engineering, we identified two variants, ISAam1(N3Y) and ISAam1(T296R), which exhibited a 5.1-fold and 4.4-fold enhancement in somatic editing efficiency, respectively. These findings demonstrate that the developed method provides an effective tool for optimizing genome editing system and screening potential target sites in plant genomes.
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2025.1620874/full
Creeth R., Thompson A., Kevei Z. (2025): DNAfree CRISPR genome editing in raspberry (Rubus idaeus) protoplast through
RNPmediated transfection. Front. Genome Ed. 7:1589431 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fgeed.2025.1589431
Protoplast-based systems have been utilised in a wide variety of plant species to enable genome editing without chromosomal introgression of foreign DNA into plant genomes. DNA-free genome editing followed by protoplast regeneration allows elite cultivars to be edited without further genetic segregation, preserving their unique genetic composition and their regulatory status as non-transgenic. However, protoplast isolation presents a barrier to the development of advanced breeding technologies in raspberry and no protocol has been published for DNA-free genome editing in the species. Pre-assembled ribonucleoprotein complexes (RNPs) do not require cellular processing and the commercial availability of Cas9 proteins and synthetic guide RNAs has streamlined genome editing protocols. This study presents a novel high-yielding protoplast isolation protocol from raspberry stem cultures and RNP-mediated transfection of protoplast with CRISPR-Cas9. Targeted mutagenesis of the phytoene desaturase gene at two intragenic loci resulted in an editing efficiency of 19%, though estimated efficiency varied depending on the indel analysis technique. Only amplicon sequencing was sensitive enough to confirm genome editing in a low efficiency sample. To our knowledge, this study constitutes the first use of DNA-free genome editing in raspberry protoplast. This protocol provides a valuable platform for understanding gene function and facilitates the future development of precision breeding in this important soft fruit crop.
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/genome-editing/articles/10.3389/fgeed.2025.1589431/full
Han Z., Huang C., Luo T., Mirkin C.A. (2025): A general genome editing strategy using CRISPR lipid nanoparticle spherical
nucleic acids. PNAS 122 (36) e2426094122 | https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2426094122
Genome editing with CRISPR–Cas systems hold promise for treating a wide range of genetic disorders and cancers. However, efficient delivery of genome editors remains challenging due to the requirement for the simultaneous delivery or intracellular generation of Cas proteins, guide RNAs, and, in some applications, donor DNAs. Furthermore, the immunogenicity and toxicity of delivery vehicles can limit the safety and efficacy of genetic medicines. Here, we combine two nucleic acid delivery approaches to create CRISPR lipid nanoparticle–spherical nucleic acids (LNP–SNAs) that are both efficient and biocompatible. Compared to lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) lacking a surface-bound DNA shell, CRISPR LNP–SNAs exhibit two- to three-fold higher cellular uptake, reduced cytotoxicity, and improved gene transfection efficiency. Across multiple cell lines and genomic loci, CRISPR LNP–SNAs induce insertion–deletion mutations at average frequencies two- to three-fold higher than those observed with LNPs. When codelivered with donor templates, CRISPR LNP–SNAs enable homology-directed repair at an average efficiency of 21 ± 7%, a 2.5-fold improvement over LNPs (8 ± 4%). The ease of synthesis and biocompatibility of CRISPR LNP–SNAs highlight their potential as a versatile delivery platform for CRISPR–Cas and other gene therapies.
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2426094122
Yilmaz B., Alvanoudi P., Kalogeropoulou A., Santa D., Bulmuş-Tüccar T., Nikolaou A. et al. (2025): Fermented dairy product
consumption and blood lipid levels in healthy adults: asystematic review. Front. Nutr. 12:1651134 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2025.1651134
Cardiovascular diseases remain the leading cause of global mortality, with diet recognized as a key factor influencing cardiovascular risk biomarkers such as blood lipids. Emerging evidence suggests fermented dairy products may offer cardioprotective benefits via fermentation-derived bioactive metabolites. This systematic review, conducted within COST Action CA20218 Promoting Innovation of ferMENTed fOods (PIMENTO), evaluated the relationship between consumption of conventional fermented dairy products and blood lipid levels and cardiovascular diseases in healthy adults. Data were qualitatively summarized and synthesized narratively, following the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) scientific guidance for health claim applications, including food characterization, bioavailability of relevant compounds, mechanisms of action, and safety. Sixty-eight studies were included: 14 controlled interventions (PICO), 37 non-controlled interventions (PIO), and 17 observational studies. Findings from intervention studies were largely inconsistent, with most trials reporting no significant changes in lipid markers following fermented dairy intake. However, a few studies reported modest reductions in total cholesterol and LDL-c or improved LDL/HDL ratios, particularly with yoghurt and kefir. Observational studies also yielded mixed and inconclusive results. Overall, study quality, result consistency, and mechanistic evidence were deemed “neither convincing nor sufficient” per EFSA criteria. Key limitations included high risk of bias, heterogeneous designs, inadequate product characterization, and limited mechanistic data. More rigorous, well-controlled human studies with appropriate comparators are needed to clarify whether conventional fermented dairy products have any lipid-lowering effects.
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1651134/full