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New research highlights how gene editing can accelerate viable crops to feed the world, and CARB-X announces funding for AMR R&D. (399 words, 2 minutes) |
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Gene editing can tame wild crops to feed the world |
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Solutions to global food security are already growing in the wild, and researchers are seeking to tame them with gene editing.
Why it matters: Wild plants contain genes enabling them to withstand drought, disease, salt, and other climate-driven threats. Gene editing can accelerate the ancient practice of crossbreeding and advance crops with these genes.
Our limited menu: Humans have been domesticating plants to make more nutritious crops easier to grow and harvest for 10,000 years. Of the estimated 435,000 plant species on earth, about 2,500 have undergone domestication, and only 250 are fully domesticated.
A modern approach: So-called de novo domestication uses biotech to speed the process. The new field has not yet produced a viable commercial crop, but offers promise of novel food sources, Nature reports.
The first example: domestication of tiny wild tomatoes—hearty plants with fruit smaller than a cherry tomato—by a team in Brazil using CRISPR-Cas9 in 2018. The resulting plant was ten times as productive, with tomatoes three times larger.
What’s next: With the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimating farmers must produce 70% more food by 2050, domestication of wild crops is seen as an essential part of the solution. |
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CARB-X’s fight against superbugs gets $25M boost from Novo Nordisk fund |
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CARB-X, a global non-profit partnership supporting drug development to fight antimicrobial resistance (AMR), announced a $25 million commitment from the Novo Nordisk Foundation. Why it matters: Bacterial AMR contributed to 4.95 million deaths in 2019, while drug-resistant fungi caused 1.6 million deaths in 2021. As pathogens mutate to overcome existing antimicrobials, we need new drugs to fight this “silent pandemic.”
The unique market challenge: To remain effective, antimicrobials must be used sparingly. But this limits potential returns on new drugs, making it hard to find investors for innovative cures.
One international effort: Boston University-based CARB-X, a public-private initiative, funds early-stage R&D into antibacterials, focusing on deadly bacteria prioritized by the WHO and CDC. By 2022, CARB-X provided nearly $400 million to 92 preclinical candidates.
The news: The Novo Nordisk Foundation committed $25 million over three years to support CARB-X’s work.
A U.S. policy solution: The proposed PASTEUR Act would help encourage antimicrobial development by creating a predictable return for novel antimicrobials, regardless of the sales volume. BIO and its member organizations have supported the PASTEUR Act before Congress.
Watch: CARB-X’s leader discusses AMR and the importance of the PASTEUR Act at the BIO International Convention. And listen to the I am BIO podcast episode where we talk with CARB-X about its work to get more antimicrobials on the market. |
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President Biden’s Thursday: No official events scheduled.
What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: Continuing negotiations on spending measures ahead of next week’s deadline. |
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