Taking advantage of an enzyme mutation to help soybeans fight a billion-dollar pest

Beneath the surface of soybean fields, an invisible threat is costing farmers billions.

Now, researchers at the University of Missouri are uncovering how nature itself may hold the key to fighting back.

The soybean cyst nematode—a microscopic worm that attacks plant roots and siphons off nutrients—devastates soybean yields worldwide, leaving crops stunted, weakened and prematurely yellow. ...