Origin Agritech has entered into a patent licensing agreement with Shandong Shunfeng Biotechnology (Shunfeng Bio) for its proprietary gene-editing enzyme, CRISPR Cas-SF01. Under the agreement, Origin Agritech will leverage Shunfeng Bio’s gene-editing tools to strengthen its R&D capabilities in trait gene editing and accelerate the adoption of advanced genomic technologies into maize breeding, expediting the development of maize varieties with higher yields, densities, and adaptabilities. This builds upon Origin Agritech’s long-term collaboration with China Agricultural University, through which two regulatory genes responsible for determining the angles of maize leaves were reportedly identified using Shunfeng’s Cas-SF01 gene-editing platform.