Genome editing can revolutionize agriculture, but only if we ensure it is safe and transparent. Our comment in Nature Biotech highlights why long-read whole genome sequencing should be the standard to confirm that genome-edited plants are free of foreign DNA. 🔗 buff.ly/zrgWbn4

🌾 #LabtoLeaf: Not all rice blight is the same. We created a diagnostic kit that identifies the precise Xoo strain in blight-ridden rice plants. This allows to inform planting strategies and means resistance to be locally matched. Read more on how it works: buff.ly/KjOoRKJ #RiceBlight #PlantScience

Differentiation of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae in vitro and during rice leaf infection https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.12.680524v1

Just Published: "The TALE PthA4 of Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri Indirectly Activates an Expansin Gene CsEXP2 and an Endoglucanase CsEG1 via CsLOB1 to Cause Citrus Canker Symptoms," by Rikky Rai and Nian Wang. Learn more: https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-03-25-0030-R

🌾 Lab to Leaf: Insights in Plant Biology 🌱 🌍 Rice feeds more than half the world. But did you know that over 90% of it is grown in Asia? Using USDA's Rice Outlook (buff.ly/w9IYfTy) you can have a closer look at the yield production of different countries on the globe. #LabtoLeaf #Plantscience #Rice

(1/3) 🌾 Meet Dr. Eliza Loo, group leader at HHU and senior scientists involved in the #HealthyCrops Project. Eliza brings the combination of her enthusiasm for plant-microbe interactions with a strong interdisciplinary skill set of bioinformatics, genetics, and plant physiology to the project.

🌾 #LabtoLeaf: How does rice survive floods? It waits for drier times. The SUB1A gene, discovered in the Indian landrace FR13A, helps rice conserve energy underwater through a survival strategy called quiescence: it pauses growth until floodwaters recede. #PlantScience #Rice

(1/3) 🌿 Meet Dr. Alvaro Pérez-Quintero, one of our researchers at IRD in France. Alvaro’s work focuses on how plant pathogens evolve, specifically how bacteria like Xanthomonas adapt to overcome plant resistance, and how these insights can help us build durable resistance strategies.

New publication from Healthy Crops! Our latest study in Plant Biotechnology Journal reports that our #genome-edited #rice varieties which are resistant to bacterial blight, are free of external DNA and show no yield penalties in multi-location field trials! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

(1/3) 🌾 Meet Dr. Michael Gomez Selvaraj, senior scientist at CIAT (@bioversityciat.bsky.social ) in Colombia, and one of our PIs at Healthy Crops. Michael leads CIAT’s plant phenomics platform in Colombia, where he develops cutting-edge tools for monitoring plant traits.

🥳 Healthy Crops was awarded 3rd place in the 2025 @hhu.de Ideas Competition! 🏆 Out of 100+ submissions, our concept to create disease-resistant crops using genome editing was recognized for its innovation and impact! Thanks to everyone supporting our efforts! #GenomeEditing #PlantScience

Wolf Frommer presents work from @healthycrops.bsky.social, a global collaboration to work on bacterial blight of rice. They are transferring transgene-free, genome edited rice to different countries, with legal frameworks in place, to test resistance to Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae. #2025ISMPMI

Great to see two teams from the Plant Science and #QBIO communities making it to the podium at yesterday’s HHU Ideas Competition by #CEDUS! 🌱🧠 Exciting projects and well deserved — very curious to watch these ideas grow! 🚀👏 @healthycrops.bsky.social @plantgen-hhu.bsky.social

📚 #PaperTrails - How can we better manage crop diseases? In a recent publication, we argue for better pathogen monitoring, clearer resistance reporting & smarter deployment of resistant varieties. Big thanks to @elizaloopi.bsky.social & everyone involved! #plantpathology #bacterialblight #rice

(1/3) Meet Dr Emily Gichuhi, researcher at KALRO and one of our PIs at Healthy Crops. Her current research focuses on enhancing rice yields under stress conditions, aiming to make rice cultivation more resilient to climate change and improving disease resistance & abiotic stress tolerance in rice.

#LabtoLeaf: What causes blight in rice? The bacterium Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) highjacks the plant's sugar transporters to promote its own growth instead. This leads to leaf lesions up to total yield loss, affecting farmers world wide. Read more about it here: buff.ly/uvyDt0u #RiceBlight

🌾 #LabtoLeaf: Not all rice is the same! Oryza sativa, the global staple, from Basmati to Swarna and IR64. Oryza glaberrima, Africa’s resilient rice, rooted in tradition and adapted to tough soils and drought. At #HealthyCrops, we're working with lines like Komboka & IR64. What’s your go-to #rice? 🍚

We’re stepping up our outreach! 🌾 Expect more from us in the next weeks: more about who we are, what we do, and what’s happening in crop science. Whether you're into genes, greenhouses, or ground-breaking research, or just like fun facts, there's something here for you. 👇

We are proud to announce that Wolf B. Frommer (@research-science.bsky.social ), Scientific Leader of Healthy Crops, has been elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (@nasonline.org)! A tremendous honor recognizing his groundbreaking contributions to plant science! #Science #HealthyCrops

Congratulations to Dr. Bing Yang, recipient of the James B. Eads Award from the Academy of Science of St. Louis! 🌱 An internationally recognized expert in plant genome engineering, Bing has made groundbreaking contributions in CRISPR/Cas-based crop resistance. #PlantScience #CRISPR

Congratulations! Great to see this recognition of the contributions of Jeff Dangl, Jonathan Jones & Brian Staskawicz to our understanding of plant immunity.

🌾 A major milestone for Healthy Crops! We will transfer our bacterial blight-resistant rice varieties to our team members at KALRO in Kenya. Next steps are field trials under local conditions with the ultimate aim of combating rice diseases! 🚀🌱 #GenomeEditing #PlantScience https://buff.ly/3Xam8Ln

Approach to combating bacterial rice diseases in East Africa Disease-resistant rice varieties created by means of genome editing The “Healthy Crops” consortium, an international team of researchers, which includes Heinrich Heine University ... weiterlesen

🌍🚜 Women farmers in The Gambia struggle with climate adaptation due to their limited access to resources and advice. A study shows: Targeted support is key! 🔍 www.zalf.de/en/aktue... #ClimateChange #Agriculture #Equality

🌾 Postdoc Opportunity! 🌾 Join Prof. Dr. Wolf B. Frommer’s research team at @hhu.bsky.social for an exciting postdoc position in disease resistance in rice! 📩 Apply now! Send your CV & motivation letter to [email protected] RT & share! 🌱 #Postdoc #PlantScience #RiceResearch

🌟 Excited to share "Edit a Genome", developed by the Institute of Molecular Physiology at University of Düsseldorf 🧬✨ This platform offers insights into genome editing techniques, and provides an overview of global regulations in genome editing for crops 🌾 Check it out now! 👇 🔗 www.editagenome.org

Interesting new research on the origin of the #potato blight. #envhist #science www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

In an unprecedented move, research-grant reviews have been suspended indefinitely at the world’s largest public funder of biomedical research https://go.nature.com/4gc0Bc5

The last part of my PhD work was published yesterday in Nature Communications!! We found a TAL effector that targets three genes to confer bacterial blight of cotton disease. Congrats to all the other co-authors on this paper! 🎉🙌🏾 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Scientists have developed a diagnostic tool to identify #quinoa plants resistant to #DownyMildew, aiding breeders in creating resilient varieties. The tool also ensures quinoa seed shipments are disease-free, preventing outbreaks. https://buff.ly/4hadogc #PlantHealth #PlantScience #Science #Plants

RESEARCH: 'MEMBRANE PROTEIN 1 encoding an amino acid transporter confers resistance to blast fungus and leaf-blight bacterium in rice' - Tingting Jiang et al, doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...

We officially stopped our activities on X! 🌾 Starting today, all updates from the Healthy Crops Project will be shared exclusively here and on LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/heal...). Follow us also there for the latest on our disease-resistant rice innovations. 🌱

🌱 Happy New Year 2025! 🎉 Here's to a year of growth, innovation, and sustainable breakthroughs in agricultural research 🌾🌍 #HappyNewYear2025 #AgricultureInnovation

🌾🔬 Exciting news! We were interviewed by @buddepiept.bsky.social about the development of our new bacterial blight resistant rice varieties. Listen to this insightful interview about how our work can help supporting robust rice yields! 🌍👇 www.deutschlandfunk.de/reis-krankhe...

The team has successfully developed #rice varieties through marker-assisted backcross breeding that are #resistant to bacterial blight. They will be transferred to partners in #Madagascar and #Tanzania, where they'll be tested in the field before they are distributed to local farmers.

The head of the Healthy Crops Project, Prof. Dr. Wolf B. Frommer was elected as a member of the National Academy of Science! Congratulation! 🎉

Have you ever wondered how #genomeediting works and how the resulting products in #agriculture are regulated around the globe? With the help of www.editagenome.org we aim to address your open questions. The website is under construction and will be updated frequently.

The appearance of an Asian strain of bacterial #blight in #Tanzania threatens #rice production in Africa. In one of our recent publications we discus the origin of the outbreak and possible solutions. doi.org/10.15252/emb...

On the next days we want to introduce you a little bit more to the project and explain what we are doing. Did you know that Healthy Crops is already a consortium of ten research institutes on 5 continents?! You can find all involved institutions on our website: www.healthycrops.org/the-consortium

Research paper: using #CRISPR to genetically edit an African rice to resist a rapidly spreading outbreak of bacterial blight in Tanzania. https://elifesciences.org/articles/84864

Our team at @hhu.bsky.social is looking for a new administrative assistant in the coordination of the project. In this temporary 50% position, you will support a great team of scientists in their daily administrative tasks. All applicants must be fluent in German and English.

Hello Blue Sky! We also finally made it here! 😍🌾 Follow us if you want to be frequently updated about our work on the development of disease-resistant #rice varieties for developing countries.