Darling 58

The Darling 58 is a genetically engineered American chestnut tree. The tree was created by American Chestnut Research & Restoration Program at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF) in collaboration with The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF)[1] to restore the American chestnut to the forests of North America. These Darling-58 trees are attacked by chestnut blight, but survive. Darling-58 trees survive to reach maturity, produce chestnuts, and multiply to restore the American chestnut tree to the forests of North America.[2][3][4][5] An error resulted in use of an alternate cultivar, Darling 54 in some field tests of the Darling 58 cultivar of American Chestnut.[6]

While The American Chestnut Foundation discontinued support of development of the Darling 58 cultivar in December 2023, in part due to the mistaken use of Darling 54 in field trials,[7] The American Chestnut Research & Restoration Program, who originated the tree, continues its development.[8]

  1. ^ "Darling 58". The American Chestnut Foundation. August 25, 2023.
  2. ^ "SUNY-ESF researchers review petition to advance Chestnut tree restoration". The Daily Orange. October 27, 2020.
  3. ^ Popkin, Gabriel (April 30, 2020). "Can Genetic Engineering Bring Back the American Chestnut?". The New York Times.
  4. ^ "Scientists Hope Genetic Engineering Can Revive the American Chestnut Tree". www.usnews.com. Reuters. April 22, 2021.
  5. ^ Melton, Lisa (April 1, 2021). "GM chestnut, Sierra Club darling". Nature Biotechnology. 39 (4): 400. doi:10.1038/s41587-021-00903-w. PMID 33846656. S2CID 233221423 – via www.nature.com.
  6. ^ Todd, Roxy (8 March 2024). "After GMO program hits snag, what's the future of restoring American chestnuts?". The Allegheny Front.
  7. ^ Brindley, Hal (2023-12-08). "Press Release: TACF Discontinues Development of Darling 58". The American Chestnut Foundation. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  8. ^ "The American Chestnut Research & Restoration Project at ESF". www.esf.edu. Retrieved 2024-06-05.