In a landmark achievement for African biotechnology, researchers from Stellenbosch University and the Agricultural Research Council have successfully produced the continent's first gene-edited grapevine. By using CRISPR-Cas9 technology to switch off a specific gene known as VvDMR6.1, the team has developed a woody crop variety with enhanced resistance to devastating diseases. This breakthrough, recently published in the journal Plant Stress, marks a significant milestone in using precision breeding to protect high-value horticultural crops in Africa.

In plants, the CO2-fixing enzyme Rubisco is hexadecameric, with each mature holoenzyme containing eight small subunits (SSus). Many plants express multiple SSus and vary their expression in response to environmental cues. Previous work indicates that this may allow fine-tuning of Rubisco’s performance in a variable environment (i.e., kinetic acclimation). Despite SSu pools being heterogeneous and dynamic, nearly no evidence exists for holoenzyme-level heterogeneity.

Gene-edited glowing plants were one of the highlights of the 2026 Garden Conference x Garden Collection Design Week held on April 17-19, 2026, at Suzhou International Expo Center in China. The glowing plants were showcased by Magicpen Bio, a China-based startup focused on research and development of gene-edited glowing plants.The glowing plants were developed by introducing firefly and glowing fungi genes into plant cells, allowing them to emit a soft glow. The researchers have modified more than 20 species to glow in the dark, including orchids, sunflowers, and chrysanthemums.