The α-amylase inhibitor is a natural protein in plants that blocks an insect’s ability to digest starch — the yummy main source of energy many grain-eating bugs seek when devouring a mass-produced crop like corn.

When plants slip this inhibitor into the pest’s tissues, its digestive enzymes get jammed and the bug is left with a belly full of starch it can’t use.

A new review published in Biotechnology Journals explores how different plants create these inhibitors, the precision at which they can target insect enzymes and how scientists have attempted boosting them in crops.

Early trials showed promise, but there are public and regulatory obstacles to using the usual genetically modified organisms.

Now researchers are exploring how gene editing to refine a plant’s natural inhibitor genes might enhance its natural defense systems without foreign DNA additions.

If successful, it could result in less dependence on chemical insecticides, protect stored grains and contribute to more sustainable farming practices.

Before this gene editing happens, however, further research is required to ensure safety for humans, livestock and insects that provide positive impacts on crops. Researchers also need to make sure the pests they’re aimed at don’t evolve their way around the inhibitors.

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