CRISPRedited

A gene-editing startup wants to help you eat healthier salads. This month, North Carolina–based Pairwise Plants is rolling out a new type of mustard greens engineered to be less bitter than the original plant. The vegetable is the first Crispr-edited food to hit the US market.Mustard greens are packed with vitamins and minerals but have a strong peppery flavor when eaten raw. To make them more palatable, they're usually cooked. Pairwise wanted to retain the health benefits of mustard greens but make them tastier to the…

Researchers experimenting with genetically engineered hamsters have found that the biology behind social behavior may be more complex than we thought. The team used CRISPR to block a certain neurochemical signaling pathway, and found that the animals’ social behaviors changed in unexpected ways.The key to the study is a hormone known as vasopressin. Among other functions, this hormone plays a key role in social behaviors, including pair bonding, sexual motivation, cooperation, social communication, dominance and…