Chinese scientists have reportedly engineered a way to use gene-editing technology to bypass natural plant behavior and force crops to inherit genes that will make them more resilient and easier to grow, according to Interesting Engineering.
"The genetic manipulation of wild plant populations has emerged as a potentially powerful and transformative strategy," the researchers said.
The technique involves using CRISPR gene-editing technology to bypass traditional Mendelian inheritance — the process by which genes are passed down through generations — to breed plants with "ideal" genes. The system is known as CRISPR-Assisted Inheritance, or CAIN.
"This gene drive-based approach thus seeks to balance crop protection and environmental considerations to minimise the loss of biodiversity while optimising productivity," the researchers wrote. "As we venture into this new frontier in genetic engineering, [CAIN] and other gene drive systems could reshape ecological management and agricultural practices."
All around the world, food supplies are being threatened by the consequences of human activities — mainly, the usage of dirty energy sources like gas and oil — that have caused our planet to overheat and weather patterns to become extreme and unpredictable. Rising global temperatures and increasingly widespread droughts have made many crops nonviable in areas where they have traditionally been grown.
It is vital that we stop this trend in its tracks by turning away from dirty energy and relying instead on clean, renewable sources of energy such as wind and solar.
However, in the meantime, we must use technology to create more sustainable agricultural practices and food sources that can withstand more extreme weather conditions.
Some recent innovations in that field include the discovery of a genetic mechanism in pear trees that allows them to tolerate drought conditions, the discovery of a gene mutation in peach trees that lets them escape the effects of spring frost, and a genome-edited type of rice that is resistant to a devastating virus.
Any of these discoveries and breakthroughs could be applied to other crops, using CRISPR technology, to make them more resilient as well.
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