The Philippine Bureau of Plant Industry has issued a biosafety permit for the commercial propagation of HIZ039 rice, which is owned and licensed by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice).According to the public information sheet on the PhilRice website, HIZ039 rice was developed through genetic engineering to boost iron and zinc levels in the grain. This was achieved using genes from rice and a species of Asian wild apple known as Malus baccata.

Begomoviruses are among the most destructive pathogens of tomato worldwide, and the introgression of Ty-genes in tomato is a key strategy for disease management. However, a single Ty-gene often provides incomplete protection against highly virulent begomovirus species. Here, commercial tomato cultivars and a series of breeding lines previously developed by the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) were inoculated with one of three begomovirus species that differed in virulence.

Peas have a remarkable ability to partner with specific soil bacteria that provide the plants with essential nitrogen, acting like a natural fertilizer factory. The plant uses specialized receptors to recognize chemical signals from the bacteria. For years, scientists suspected that a specific mystery gene, known as Sym2, mainly controls how certain pea varieties identify their microbial partners. While a candidate gene called PsLykX seemed to fit the description perfectly, researchers lacked the concrete proof needed to confirm that it was actually responsible for this vital connection.