1. Using human proteins helps potatoes and rice grow 50 per cent bigger

  Scientists found that using proteins linked to obesity creates crops that can grow 50 per cent more. A new collaborative study from the University of Chicago, Peking University, and Guizhou University revealed that inserting a gene linked to human obesity and fat into crops could help them grow bigger and ampler.

  Modifying plant RNA is a promising strategy to dramatically improve plant growth and crop yield, as explained by the scientists in the study published in the journal Nature. It’s known that RNA reads DNA, which then manages proteins. However, the University of Chicago Professor and lead researcher of the study Chuan He and his team discovered that RNA doesn’t just read the DNA: In 2011, the research team found that the cell can also regulate the nature of the system it’s in by itself. It implies that when the RNA is altered, it has the ability to....