Die Chronologie zu den Diskussionen/Aktionen(► NGT-Debatten) der EU-Mitgliedsstaaten über den Kommissionsentwurf wurde mit den Antwortschreiben von 16 Mitgliedsstaaten auf das Non-Paper der ungarischen Ratspräsidentschaft aktualisiert.

Für den 10. September 2024 ist zwar eine Debatte über die neuen genomischen Techniken auf dem Treffen der Agrarminister (m/w) vorgesehen, aber bislang findet man dazu nichts in der Tagesordnung. Möglicherweise wurde eine entsprechende Aussprache verschoben, da Nagy auf die Ansinnen der Mehrheit der Mitgliedsstaaten nicht eingeht.

Unter der Rubrik ► Publikationen empfiehlt der WGG interessante Publikationen.  

Zwei Meldungen dominierten diese Woche die deutsch- und englischsprachige Medienlandschaft.

1.      Die Forderung von 376 Unternehmen nach einer Gentechnik-Kennzeichnung von Produkten aus genomeditierten Pflanzen. Der offene Brief war für die Medien weitgehend uninteressant. Viel wichtiger war, dass der Brief von Nagy persönlich entgegengenommen wurde. I. Nagy ist der gegenwärtige EU-Ratsvorsitzende für Landwirtschaft und Fischerei, der den Kommissionentwurf zur Regelung von genomeditierten Pflanzen voranbringen will.

2.      De Mitteilung von Testbiotech, dass das neue GVO-Panel der EFSA mit Mitgliedern besetzt wurde, die selbst auf dem Gebiet der Gentechnik forschen und deshalb Interessenskonflikte haben. Das Panel könne daher nicht als unabhängig von Wirtschaft- und Industrieinteressen sein. Wie üblich bleibt Testbiotech in allem sehr vage. 

The chronology of the discussions/actions (► NGT debates) of the EU member states on the Commission draft has been updated with the replies of 16 member states to the non-paper of the Hungarian Council Presidency.

A debate on the new genomic techniques is scheduled for September 10, 2024 at the meeting of agriculture ministers, but so far there is nothing on the agenda. It is possible that a corresponding debate has been postponed as Nagy is not responding to the requests of the majority of member states.

The WGG recommends interesting publications in the ► publications section.

Two reports dominated the German and English-language media landscape this week.

1. the demand by 376 companies for genetic engineering labeling of products from genome-edited plants. The open letter was largely uninteresting for the media. Much more important was the fact that the letter was received personally by Nagy. I. Nagy is the current EU Council President for Agriculture and Fisheries, who wants to promote the Commission's draft regulation on genome-edited plants.

2. the notification from Testbiotech that the new EFSA GMO Panel is composed of members who themselves conduct research in the field of genetic engineering and therefore have conflicts of interest. The panel can therefore not be considered independent of commercial and industrial interests. As usual, Testbiotech remains very vague about everything.



Press Releases -Media / Presse- und Medienberichte

EFSA: European Commission launches call for EFSA’s next Executive Director

https://www.efsa.europa.eu/de/news/european-commission-launches-call-efsas-next-executive-director-0

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:C_202405265

Informationsdienst Gentechnik: Gentechnikrecht: 376 Unternehmen übergeben Forderungen an Nagy

https://www.keine-gentechnik.de/nachricht/34959?cHash=0201024c938c4a679a66f3cea047f94f

VLOG: Unternehmen für Wahlfreiheit Offener Brief an die EU-Agrarminister:innen im Sommer

https://www.ohnegentechnik.org/fuer-unternehmen/unternehmen-fuer-wahlfreiheit-ministerrat

deutsch: https://www.ohnegentechnik.org/fileadmin/user_upload/01_unternehmen/b_zertifizierung/b12_unternehmen_fuer_wahlfreiheit/NGT_Offener_Brief_Agrarministerrat_DE_240422.pdf

english:

https://www.ohnegentechnik.org/fileadmin/user_upload/01_unternehmen/b_zertifizierung/b12_unternehmen_fuer_wahlfreiheit/NGT_open_letter_ag._ministers_EN.pdf

GM Watch: European food businesses call for rigorous labelling of new GMOs

https://gmwatch.org/en/106-news/latest-news/20452-european-food-businesses-call-for-rigorous-labelling-of-new-gmos

Testbiotech: Interessenkonflikte gefährden die Unabhängigkeit der EFSA - ExpertInnen mit Industrieverbindungen

dominieren das neue Gentechnik-Panel

Im Juli hat die Europäische Behörde für Lebensmittelsicherheit (EFSA) das für die Bewertung von gentechnisch veränderten Organismen zuständige ‚GMO Panel‘ neu besetzt. Recherchen von Testbiotech zeigen, dass dem Panel jetzt eine große Anzahl von EntwicklerInnen von Gentechnikpflanzen mit Verbindungen zur Industrie angehören, die auch als AktivistInnen für eine Deregulierung der Neuen Gentechnik (NGT) auftreten.

https://www.testbiotech.org/aktuelles/interessenkonflikte-gefaehrden-die-unabhaengigkeit-der-efsa/

Conflicts of interest taint the independence of EFSA - Experts linked to industry dominate the new GMO panel

In July, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) appointed new experts for the ‘GMO Panel’, which is responsible for the assessment of genetically engineered organisms. Research conducted by Testbiotech found that the panel now includes a large number of researchers involved in the development of genetically engineered (GE) plants, some of whom have links to industry, and are actively lobbying for the deregulation of new genetic engineering (NGT).

https://www.testbiotech.org/en/news/conflicts-of-interest-taint-the-independence-of-efsa/

POINT NEWSLETTER NR. 266 – AUGUST 2024 Aktuelle Biotechnologie

https://www.scienceindustries.ch/_file/36489/point-2024-08-266-d.pdf

Only some selected press releases or media reports are listed here. The daily up-date of the press releases and

 media reports are ►here: August week 36

Publications – Publikationen

Chen Y., Zhang B., Annis G.B. (2024):Editorial: Plant biotechnology and genetics for sustainable agriculture and global

food security. Front. Plant Sci., Sec. Plant Biotechnology 15 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2024.1479632

This article is part of the Research Topic Plant Biotechnology and Genetics for Sustainable Agriculture and Global Food Security View all 12 articles

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2024.1479632/full

Wray-Cahen D., Hallerman E.M., Tizard M. (2024): Global Regulatory Policies for Animal Biotechnology: Overview,

Opportunities and Challenges. Front. Genome Ed, Sec. Genome Editing in Animals 6 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fgeed.2024.1467080

This article is part of the Research Topic Insights in Genome Editing in Animals 2023/2024 View all 6 articles

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/genome-diting/articles/10.3389/fgeed.2024.1467080/abstract

Rakesh, V., Ghosh, A. (2024): Advancements in genetically modified insect pest-resistant crops in India.

Planta 260, 86 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-024-04511-1

Main conclusion: The review offers insights into the current state of research on insect pest-resistant GM crops and the regulations governing the cultivation of GM crops in India.

Abstract: India has a rich crop diversity of more than 160 major and minor crops through its diverse agroclimatic conditions. Insect pests alone cause around USD 36 billion in crop loss annually in India. The last two decades witnessed considerable progress in managing insect pests by adopting innovative techniques including transgenics. In research, significant advancement has been brought in insect pest-resistant transgenics in India since its inception in 2002. However, any events have not been endorsed owing to biosafety impediments, except Bt cotton reaching the commercial release stage. A landmark decision to exempt certain types of gene-edited plants from genetically modified organism (GMO) regulations offers great promise for developing novel insect-resistant crops in India. The article reviews the current research on insect pest-resistant transgenics and its regulations in India.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00425-024-04511-1

Singh, S., Sangh, C., Kona, P. et al.(2024): Genome editing in peanuts: advancements, challenges and applications.

 Nucleus 67, 127–139 | https://doi.org/10.1007/s13237-024-00482-6

Genome editing, a powerful technology for precise manipulation of DNA sequences, has revolutionized the field of agricultural biotechnology. In recent years, there has been increasing interest in applying genome editing techniques to improve important crop plants, such as peanut (Arachis hypogaea). Peanuts are a vital source of oil and protein, and they play a crucial role in global food security. However, peanut crops face numerous challenges, including susceptibility to diseases, pests, and environmental stressors. The advent of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-based genome editing tools has provided researchers with a rapid, efficient, and precise method to edit the peanut genome. Despite being a polyploid crop, several successful applications of genome editing in peanuts have been reported. For instance, CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing has been used to increase oleic acid content in oil and allergen reduction in peanut varieties through precise genome modifications. However, despite these advancements, challenges remain in the widespread adoption of genome editing in peanuts, off-target effects, and unintended consequences. Advancements in CRISPR-based genome editing holds great promise for the improvement of peanuts by addressing its various prospective traits like phytate reduction, fresh seed dormancy, aflatoxin resistance and abiotic stress tolerance. However, careful consideration of issues, such as safety assessment, and public acceptance, is essential for the successful application and commercialization of genome-edited peanut varieties. Future research and collaborations are needed to overcome these challenges and fully harness the potential of genome editing in improving peanut crops for sustainable agriculture and global food security.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13237-024-00482-6

Huai D., Xue X., Wu J., Pandey M.K. (2024): Enhancing peanut nutritional quality by editing AhKCS genes lacking natural

variation. Plant Biotechnology Journal | https://doi.org/10.1111/pbi.14423

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pbi.14423

Wu J., Zhang L., Ma X., Fu X et al. (2024): The evolutionary significance of whole genome duplications in oil biosynthesis

of oil crops. Horticulture Research 11 (7), uhae156 | https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhae156

https://academic.oup.com/hr/article/11/7/uhae156/7689641

Aleem, M., Razzaq, M.K., Aleem, M. et al. (2024): Genome-wide association study provides new insight into the underlying

mechanism of drought tolerance during seed germination stage in soybean. Sci Rep 14, 20765 | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-71357-8

Drought is one of the major environmental issues that reduce crop yield. Seed germination is a crucial stage of plant development in all crop plants, including soybean. In soybean breeding, information about genetic mechanism of drought tolerance has great importance. However, at germination stage, there is relatively little knowledge on the genetic basis of soybean drought resistance. The objective of this work was to find the quantitative trait nucleotides (QTNs) linked to drought tolerance related three traits using a genome-wide association study (GWAS), viz., germination rate (GR), root length (RL), and whole seedling length (WSL), using germplasm population of 240 soybean PIs with 34,817 SNPs genotype data having MAF > 0.05. It was observed that heritability (H²) for GR, WSL, and RL across both environments (2020, and 2019) were high in the range of 0.76–0.99, showing that genetic factors play a vital role in drought tolerance as compared to environmental factors. A number of 23 and 27 QTNs were found to be linked to three traits using MLM and mrMLM, respectively. Three significant QTNs, qGR8-1, qWSL13-1, and qRL-8, were identified using both MLM and mrMLM methods among these QTNs. QTN8, located on chromosome 8 was consistently linked to two traits (GR and RL). The area (± 100 Kb) associated with this QTN was screened for drought tolerance based on gene annotation. Fifteen candidate genes were found by this screening. Based on the expression data, four candidate genes i.e. Glyma08g156800, Glyma08g160000, Glyma08g162700, and Glyma13g249600 were found to be linked to drought tolerance regulation in soybean. Hence, the current study provides evidence to understand the genetic constitution of drought tolerance during the germination stage and identified QTNs or genes could be utilized in molecular breeding to enhance the yield under drought stress.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-71357-8

Arrones A., Antar O., Pereira-Dias L., Solana L. et al. (2024): A novel tomato interspecific (Solanum lycopersicum var.

cerasiforme and Solanum pimpinellifolium) MAGIC population facilitates trait association and candidate gene discovery in untapped exotic germplasm, Horticulture Research 11,(7), uhae154 | https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhae154

We developed a novel eight-way tomato multiparental advanced generation intercross (MAGIC) population to improve the accessibility of tomato relatives genetic resources to geneticists and breeders. The interspecific tomato MAGIC population (ToMAGIC) was obtained by intercrossing four accessions each of Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme and Solanum pimpinellifolium, which are the weedy relative and the ancestor of cultivated tomato, respectively. The eight exotic ToMAGIC founders were selected based on a representation of the genetic diversity and geographical distribution of the two taxa. The resulting MAGIC population comprises 354 lines, which were genotyped using a new 12k tomato single primer enrichment technology panel and yielded 6488 high-quality single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs). The genotyping data revealed a high degree of homozygosity, an absence of genetic structure, and a balanced representation of the founder genomes. To evaluate the potential of the ToMAGIC population, a proof of concept was conducted by phenotyping it for fruit size, plant pigmentation, leaf morphology, and earliness. Genome-wide association studies identified strong associations for the studied traits, pinpointing both previously identified and novel candidate genes near or within the linkage disequilibrium blocks. Domesticated alleles for fruit size were recessive and were found, at low frequencies, in wild/ancestral populations. Our findings demonstrate that the newly developed ToMAGIC population is a valuable resource for genetic research in tomato, offering significant potential for identifying new genes that govern key traits in tomato. ToMAGIC lines displaying a pyramiding of traits of interest could have direct applicability for integration into breeding pipelines providing untapped variation for tomato breeding.

https://academic.oup.com/hr/article/11/7/uhae154/7686815

Chen X., Zhong Z., Tang X., Yang S. et al. (2024): Advancing PAM-less genome editing in soybean using CRISPR-SpRY.

Horticulture Research11,(8), uhae160 | https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhae160

Although CRISPR-Cas9 technology has been rapidly applied in soybean genetic improvement, it is difficult to achieve the targeted editing of the specific loci in the soybean complex genome due to the limitations of the classical protospacer adjacent motif (PAM). Here, we developed a PAM-less genome editing system mediated by SpRY in soybean. By performing targeted editing of representative agronomic trait targets in soybean and evaluating the results, we demonstrate that the SpRY protein can achieve efficient targeted mutagenesis at relaxed PAM sites in soybean. Furthermore, the SpRY-based cytosine base editor SpRY-hA3A and the adenine base editor SpRY-ABE8e both can accurately induce C-to-T and A-to-G conversion in soybean, respectively. Thus, our data illustrate that the SpRY toolbox can edit the soybean genomic sequence in a PAM-free manner, breaking restrictive PAM barriers in the soybean genome editing technology system. More importantly, our research enriches soybean genome editing tools, which has important practical application value for precise editing and molecular design in soybean breeding.

https://academic.oup.com/hr/article/11/8/uhae160/7689644

EFSA

Gkrintzali G, Georgiev M, Garcia Matas R, Maggiore A, Giarnecchia R, Verloo D and Bottex B, (2024): EFSA's activities on

emerging risks in 2022. EFSA supporting publication 2024: 21(9):EN-8995 44 pp. doi:10.2903/sp.efsa.2024.EN-8995

The main objectives of EFSA's activities on emerging risks encompass: (i) conducting activities to identify emerging risks; (ii) developing and improving emerging risk identification (ERI) methodologies and approaches; and (iii) communicating identified issues and risks. The outcome of these activities equips EFSA to anticipate forthcoming challenges in the continuously evolving landscape of risk assessment. EFSA networks of knowledge contributing to the emerging risks identification activity include the Emerging Risks Exchange Network (EREN), the Stakeholder Discussion Group on Emerging Risks (StaDG-ER), EFSA's scientific units, the scientific panels, the Scientific Committee and their working groups. The current technical report summarises the activities of all groups involved in the emerging risk identification procedure, the issues identified in the course of 2022, the emerging risk identification methodologies being developed, and the collaborative activities. In total, 13 potential emerging issues were discussed in 2022 and two were concluded to be emerging risks. The potential issues were classified according to the hazard. The year 2022 marks a turn in EFSA's activities on emerging risk identification. To achieve strategic objective no. 2 ‘Ensure preparedness for future risks analysis needs’ of the EFSA Strategy 2027, a new process ‘Environmental scanning and strategic options definition’ has been developed. The process adds to the already existing emerging risks analysis workflow a second workflow that is more forward-looking, to deal with horizon scanning in the areas of food and feed safety, plant health and animal health. Similarly to the emerging risks analysis workflow, the new workflow for horizon scanning strongly relies on partnership to be prepared for future challenges, build resilience, and proactively shape the future in a one-health approach.

https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.2903/sp.efsa.2024.EN-8995