Gene-silencing spray lets us modify plants without changing DNA

Don’t like the look of those roses in your garden? One day you might be able to buy a spray that changes the colour of their flowers by silencing certain genes. Farmers may use similar gene-silencing sprays to boost yields, make their crops more nutritious, protect them from droughts and trigger ripening. The technique could let us change plant traits without altering their DNA. “A spray can be used immediately without having to go through the years involved in development of a GM or conventionally bred crop,” says David Baulcombe at the University of Cambridge, who studies gene silencing in plants. One spray can also be used on many different varieties, he points out.  Companies like Monsanto are already developing gene-silencing sprays that get inside bugs and kill them by disabling vital genes.