Scientists in Sweden have taken an important step toward fighting potato late blight, a plant disease that once triggered an historic famine in Ireland and now threatens to spread globally due to climate change. 

A new study reports the synthesis of a peptide that specifically attacks Phytophthora infestans (P. infestans) to protect potato and tomato crops—without harm to other plants. The work was carried out by researchers at Stockholm’s KTH Royal Institute of Technology, in collaboration with research partners in Italy, India and Australia.

SlMYB32 was identified as a repressor regulating phenylpropanoid pathway. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutagenesis of SlMYB32 results in flavonol-rich tomatoes with 1 mg g^-1 FW rutin.

A fast-track method of breeding disease-resistant ash trees has been developed by researchers leading efforts to conserve the species

Antimicrobial resistance is becoming a global burden in human health and food production, so affordable new materials are needed to overcome this growing problem.

To answer the call, a multidisciplinary research team led by Flinders University with UK experts has discovered a novel solution for safe and effective use in antimicrobial and antifungal applications.