GM purple rice could cut risk of cancer

A purple rice with the potential to combat cancer, heart disease and diabetes has been genetically developed by scientists in China. The rice gets its purple colouring from the high levels of antioxidant-boosting pigments called anthocyanins, which are also found in blueberries and red cabbage.Reporting their findings in the Molecular Plant journal, lead researcher Dr Yao-Guang Liu revealed that he and his team found a way to "stack" the eight genes needed for anthocyanin production and activate them in rice's "endosperm" - a tissue produced inside the seeds of the rice.