Gene editing technologies - such as those used in agriculture and de-extinction projects - can be repurposed to offer what an international team of scientists is calling a transformative solution for restoring genetic diversity and saving endangered species.

An engineer with the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture has received one of three Gold Medal awards for 2025 from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). Robert T. Burns, a distinguished professor in the UT Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, was honored at the ASABE Annual Meeting on July 16.

Burns received the Cyrus Hall McCormick – Jerome Increase Case Gold Medal, which recognizes exceptional and meritorious engineering achievement in agriculture that has resulted in new concepts, products, processes or methods that advanced the development of agriculture. His current academic efforts include coordinating the UT Precision Livestock Farming Team and working with the application of technology to collect and analyze data to better monitor and manage animal production systems.

Recently, a research team led by Dr. Tida Ge from Xinjiang University and Ningbo University conducted a pot experiment to explore this question. The study selected peas as the experimental crop and examined two types of microplastics: traditional microplastics (polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE)) and biodegradable microplastics (polycaprolactone (PCL) and polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT)). These were added to the soil at doses of 0%, 0.1%, and 1% (w/w) to observe the growth status of peas during three critical growth stages: seedling, flowering, and maturity. The study also analyzed soil nutrients, microbial activity, and community changes. The study has been published in Frontiers of Agricultural Science and Engineering (DOI: 10.15302/J-FASE-2025626).