Experimental rice field with gene editing is vandalized in Italy

An experimental rice field using innovative genomic techniques was vandalized in Italy, compromising the results of research aimed at making agriculture more efficient and sustainable. The research group at the University of Milan, authorized in March to test a rice crop modified with the CRISPR/Cas9 system, had its experiment sabotaged in the province of Pavia. The information was released by the Reuters Agency.

The objective of the modification, carried out on a small piece of land 70 km from Milan, was to increase the resistance of rice to the main pathogen of the crop. The Nobel Prize-winning CRISPR/Cas9 technique differs from GMOs in that it does not involve the introduction of genes from other species.

Between Thursday and Friday last week, unidentified individuals invaded the fenced area and uprooted the plants, meticulously cutting them so that the experiment failed.

"The next morning, the farmer found the plants floating in the rice field and called the police. The surveillance cameras were deactivated, so those responsible were not identified and no one claimed the act," said professor Vittoria Brambilla, head of the research team at University of Milan.

After decades without approval for agricultural genetic experiments, Brambilla's research took advantage of an emergency drought decree issued last year, which temporarily authorized field tests with genomic techniques. With two-thirds of the plants not surviving and the remainder seriously damaged, the experiment will need to be repeated next year to obtain concrete results. However, the deadline for testing is until the end of 2024.

Senator Luca De Carlo, chairman of the Italian Senate's agriculture committee, promised to organize a vote by the end of this week to extend the law's validity.

Understand Crispr/Cas9

The Crispr/Cas9 technique consists of a genetic editing tool that opens up possibilities for the development of more resistant, nutritious and productive crops. This tool allows scientists to cut and modify plant DNA with high precision, enabling several desirable genetic modifications.

Crispr/Cas9 works together with two main molecules:

• Crispr (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats): repetitive DNA sequences that function as a "guide" for the system, indicating which regions of the plant's DNA should be modified.

• Cas9 (CRISPR-associated protein 9): It is the "molecular scissors" that precisely cuts DNA, allowing the insertion, deletion or alteration of specific sequences.