Scientists from Mass General Brigham and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center have developed a novel gene editing tool called STITCHR. Unlike traditional CRISPR, STITCHR inserts entire genes at precise locations, minimizing unintended mutations. This gene editing tool simplifies use and offers potential as a one-time treatment for genetic disorders. The technology uses retrotransposons, naturally occurring “jumping genes” found in all eukaryotic organisms, which can move and integrate into genomes.

China is the second largest maize producer and consumer globally. During maize production, Fusarium spp. often gets infected, and mycotoxins like fumonisin contaminate it. Fumonisin has become the mostwidely polluted mycotoxin type in China. Planting genetically modified maize is an economical andeffective approach to reducing fumonisin pollution in products. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of two transgenic events from China, Bt Cry1Ab Ma CM8101 and Bt-Cry1Ab, Cry2Ab, G10evo Ruifeng 8,

ISAAA Inc., in collaboration with the Philippine Agriculture and Fisheries Biotechnology Program of the Department of Agriculture (DA Biotech), held a webinar titled Unlocking the Potential of Animal Biotech in the Philippines: Research Updates and Regulatory Prospects on 10 April 2025 via Zoom. This webinar provided an overview of the status of animal biotechnology research and potential regulatory directions in the Philippines.

In 2024, the IAS has drastically managed and conducted 32 scientific tasks with the fund of VND 21.8 billion (accounted for 64.5% budget). Beside, the IAS scientific service activities gained VND 12.1 billion (accounted for 35.5% budget). The scienticfic tasks of state level, ministry level, extension, international projects, local cooperation and team works occupied 8.1%, 13.7%, 13.3%, 3.7%, 14.2% and 11.6% R&D budget, respectively.

Agriculture has been recognized as a bright spot in the economic development of 2024. The agricultural and rural sector implements the 2024 Plan in the context of mixed advantages, difficulties and challenges; including the strong impact of market fluctuations, intense hot weather, drought, rainstorms in the Central Highlands and Central regions, salt intrusion in southern regions, Storm No. 3 (Yagi) caused heavy damage to the agricultural production (VND 31,800 billion lossed).