Sunday Evening News 478 / 2026
Weekly report on genetic engineering, genome editing, biotechnology and legal regulation.
May 2026-06-08 - 2026-06-14 Week 24 -2026
„Große Siege werden durch Mut errungen, größere durch Liebe, die größten durch Geduld.“
Peter Kettenfeier Rosegger (1843–1918), österreichischer Schriftsteller
“Great victories are won through courage, greater ones through love, and the
greatest through patience.”
Peter Kettenfeier Rosegger (1843–1918), Austrian writer
Meetings – Conferences / Treffen - Veranstaltungen
STOA workshop: Europe's future after embracing New Genomic Techniques
Registration: https://ep-events.europarl.europa.eu/eprs/STOA_workshop_30June_2026_copy_2026/e/ce/
Press Releases - Media / Presse- und Medienberichte
EU-Parliament:New genomic techniques for plants to boost innovation in sustainable agriculture
Informationsdienst Gentechnik: Gentechnikverordnung: letzte Abstimmung im EU-Parlament?
https://www.keine-gentechnik.de/nachricht/ngt-verordnung-vor-der-abstimmung-waechst-die-anspannung
Offener Brief an österreichische EU-Abgeordnete zur Abstimmung über Neue Gentechnik
AbL:Über 2.000 Wirtschaftsunternehmen fordern: EU-Parlament muss Neues Gentechnik-Gesetz ablehnen
GEMEINSAME PM: EU-Parlament entscheidet über Neue Genomische Techniken - Verbändeallianz ruft zur Zustimmung
auf
https://www.presseportal.de/pm/77329/6291852
Britischer High Court erklärt Gentechnik-Verordnung für rechtswidrig - Urteil bestärkt Kritiker Neuer Gentechnik
Defend Food Sovereignty: Reject NGT Patents
https://www.european-left.org/defend-food-sovereignty-reject-ngt-patents/
Open letter: ECVC demands the rejection of the legislative proposal on genetically modified micro-organisms
Warum Konsumenten genomeditierte Lebensmittel auf dem Teller akzeptieren
Hood L.: Would you buy milk from a gene‑edited cow? Consumers may be more open than you think
Häusling M.: Briefing: Gentechnisch veränderte Mikroorganismen (im Rahmen des Biotech Act)
Seed patents: Now is the time for the EU to make the right decision
Only some selected press releases or media reports are listed here. The daily up-date of the press releases and
media reports are ►here: May - June-week 24/2026
Publications – Publikationen
Li, H., Chai, Z., Shi, X et al. (20026): Multiplexed, precise genome engineering in monocots with twin prime editing
systems. Nat Biotechnol | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41587-026-03174-5
Simultaneously introducing diverse genomic edits remains a challenge in crop genome engineering. Here we describe a twin prime editing-based knockout (TKO) system that installs stop codon clusters (SCCs) for precise translational termination with minimal in-frame mutations. TKO achieves knockout efficiencies of up to 70.5%, 58.6% and 75.1% in rice, maize and wheat protoplasts, respectively, and produces heritable knockout alleles in 96.8% of regenerated rice plants. In hexaploid wheat, TKO outperforms Cas9 4.2-fold in generating triple-homolog knockouts, largely by reducing in-frame mutations. Orthogonal TKO editors with sequence-divergent SCCs enable simultaneous knockout of up to ten genes without cross-interference. Integration of TKO with conventional prime editing establishes TRIM1 (TKO editor-enabled gene rupture and development of integrated multitype genome modification system) for simultaneous knockout and precise editing, achieving a 22.8% coediting of four genes in rice. TRIM2 extends this capacity to kilobase-scale modifications through a prime editor–recombinase system, enabling a 4.9-kb insertion (1.2% efficiency) and gene knockout (up to 79.8%) in protoplasts.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-026-03174-5
Kai P. Purnhagen K.P., Wesseler J. (2026): Law and Economics of Regulation of Engineered Living Materials in the EU
Prospects for Investments and Innovation
Ogienko A.A., Surkova E.S., Omelina E.S. (2026): Genetically Modified Plants in Agriculture. Biology 2026, 15(12), 923;
https://doi.org/10.3390/biology15120923
Genetically modified (GM) plants have revolutionized agriculture for more than three decades. The production of a GM plants is a complex, multi-stage process. Several key methods are available for generating GM plants. The choice of transformation method depends on the type of plant (dicotyledonous or monocotyledonous), the objective (large-scale production versus studying a specific gene in particular cells or tissues), and whether stable or transient transformation is desired. Following successful transformation, the next step is the regeneration of a whole plant from a single cell in tissue culture, which is a labor-intensive and time-consuming process. Currently, numerous genes that confer desirable traits have been identified. These traits include stress tolerance, herbicide and pest resistance, and improved consumer qualities (such as flavor, appearance, shelf life, and nutritional value). In this review, we describe the main methods for producing GM plants and provide examples of trait genes utilized in agricultural biotechnology. Despite the fact that GM plants represent one of the most significant biotechnological advances, they also remain among the most contentious issues in contemporary food safety and agricultural policy. Here, we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using GM plants for humans.
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/15/12/923
Vázquez-Barrios V., Butler I.A.E., Rojas P., Wegier A. (2026): Transgene introgression into wild cotton populations generates
long-term genetic and ecological effects in a center of origin. Environmental Pollution 405, 128502 | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2026.128502
The environmental persistence of genetically modified (GM) traits beyond authorized cultivation areas remains poorly understood, particularly in centers of origin of crop species. Here, we evaluated the presence, genetic configuration, and ecological effects of transgenes introgressed into two sites of the Yucatan Peninsula Metapopulation of Gossypium hirsutum in Mexico. Using molecular detection of GM traits combined with field-based ecological sampling, we found that 47.2% of sampled individuals carried at least one transgene, with cp4-epsps being the most frequently detected modifications (20.8%), followed by cry genes (13.9%) and stacked events (12.5%). Notably, we detected the isolated presence of cry2Ab, suggesting post-introgression segregation and recombination of commercial events under natural conditions. We also assessed indirect ecological effects associated with transgenes by analyzing ant abundance and species richness on wild cotton plants. Ant abundance differed significantly between transgene-positive and transgene-negative plants, with consistent but non-significant trends for species richness, indicating that introgressed GM traits can modify biotic interactions with non-target organisms in natural environments. These effects were detected outside authorized release areas and years after initial commercial deployment of GM cotton. Our findings demonstrate that transgene introgression into wild cotton populations can generate genetically novel configurations and long-term ecological effects not accounted for in current biosafety and environmental risk assessment frameworks, which focus on event stability under controlled conditions and assume limited gene flow. We argue that risk assessments should incorporate post-release evolutionary dynamics and indirect ecological interactions to evaluate the long-term environmental consequences of GM crop cultivation in centers of origin.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749126008729?via%3Dihub
Zhou M., Wang Y., Thi K.L.P., Chi Y. et al. (2026): PtrbZIP12 improves drought resistance in Populus trichocarpa by directly
targeting PtrDHN and PtrPOD. Horticulture Research 13, Issue 5, uhag034 | https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhag034
This research examines how the basic leucine zipper (bZIP) transcription factor (TF) influences drought stress responses in tree species, emphasizing its related regulatory pathways, and thus offering a theoretical framework for understanding drought response mechanisms regulated by the bZIP TF family. Specifically, we characterized the functional role of the S subfamily bZIP gene, PtrbZIP12, from Populus trichocarpa, by developing transgenic poplars that either overexpressed or knocked down PtrbZIP12. The findings indicated that PtrbZIP12 markedly improved drought tolerance in transgenic plants by facilitating reactive oxygen species scavenging, enhancing proline biosynthesis, and reducing plasma membrane peroxidation and cell death. To pinpoint PtrbZIP12’s downstream targets, RNA sequencing was performed, followed by chromatin immunoprecipitation-PCR (ChIP-PCR), yeast one-hybrid, and dual-luciferase assays. These analyses confirmed that PtrbZIP12 binds directly to the promoters of PtrDHN (dehydrin) and PtrPOD (peroxidase), leading to the activation of their expression. Transgenic poplars overexpressing (OE) PtrDHN or PtrPOD were subsequently generated, and similar to PtrbZIP12, their OE conferred enhanced drought tolerance. Moreover, coexpression of PtrbZIP12 with PtrbZIP3 further elevated PtrDHN transcript levels, resulting in improved drought resilience in the PtrbZIP12 transgenic lines. Moreover, phosphorylation was identified as a key factor in boosting PtrbZIP12-mediated transcriptional regulation of PtrPOD and PtrDHN, underscoring the significance of posttranslational modification in plant drought stress responses.
https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhag034
EFSA
FEZ Panel (2026): Safety evaluation of an extension of use of the food enzyme glucan 1,4-α-maltohydrolase from the genetically
modified Bacillus licheniformis strain NZYM-FR. EFSA Journal, 24(6), e10134. https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10134
https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10134
FEZ Panel (2026): Safety evaluation of an extension of use of the food enzyme glucan 1,4-α-maltohydrolase from the genetically
modified Bacillus licheniformis strain NZYM-CY. EFSA Journal, 24(6), e10128. https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10128
https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10128
FEZ Panel (2026): Safety evaluation of the food enzyme subtilisin from the genetically modified Bacillus licheniformis strain NZYM-PD.
EFSA Journal, 24(6), e10133. https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10133
https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10133
FEZ Panel (2026): Safety evaluation of a food enzyme containing oryzin and leucyl aminopeptidase activities and a heat-treated food
enzyme containing only leucyl aminopeptidase activity from the non-genetically modified Aspergillus sp. strain FL 72-230. EFSA Journal, 24(6), e10132. https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10132
https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10132
FEZ Panel (2026): Safety evaluation of an extension of use of the food enzyme β-galactosidase from the genetically modified Bacillus
licheniformis strain NZYM-BT. EFSA Journal, 24(6), e10137. https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10137
https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.2903/j.efsa.2026.10137