CABI scientists, who have published their research in the journal CABI Agriculture and Bioscience, suggest that an accidentally introduced parasitoid could help save wild box trees from ecological extinction.

The study highlights how an unidentified species of Eriborus (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) could be used as a classical biological control for box tree moth Cydalima perspectalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) in Europe and North America.

These insects, including pollinators, predators, and crop pests, play a vital role in moving nutrients, energy, and genetic material across ecosystems. Studying them has proven notoriously difficult, as they spend much of their lives high in the atmosphere.

Fresh leafy vegetables such as pakchoi rapidly lose quality after harvest due to leaf yellowing and senescence. This study uncovers the molecular mechanism through which the plant hormone 2,4-epibrassinolide (EBR), a brassinosteroid analog, delays leaf senescence in pakchoi. Researchers identified BrWRKY8, a nucleus-localized transcription factor that promotes leaf aging by activating chlorophyll degradation (BrSGR2) and brassinosteroid degradation (BrCHI2) genes. EBR treatment suppresses BrWRKY8 expression, thereby maintaining chlorophyll and hormone balance, leading to extended postharvest freshness. These findings reveal a critical regulatory pathway linking EBR and BrWRKY8 in delaying leaf senescence.

Tomato improvement through genome editing has long been hindered by the difficulty of generating transgenic plants. Researchers have now developed a virus-induced genome editing (VIGE) platform that enables heritable mutations in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) without the need for tissue culture. By engineering a tobacco rattle virus (TRV) system carrying mobile guide RNAs derived from the tomato Flowering Locus T (SlFT) gene, and pairing it with a SlUBI10-driven Cas9 expression line, they successfully produced knockout tomato seeds with up to 100% heritability. This innovative system dramatically reduces time and labor costs for tomato gene editing, opening the door to rapid functional studies and breeding applications.

Researchers from Aarhus University are one step closer to understanding how some plants survive without nitrogen. A breakthrough that could eventually reduce the need for artificial fertilizer in crops such as wheat, maize, or rice.