A new gene could quell the ever growing challenge of feeding more humans, whose numbers are likely to bloat to 9.5 billion by 2050, with the same  amount of water, fertilizers and arable land available today, say scientists.   The gene called Scarecrow, isolated by could lead to new varieties of staple crops with 50% higher yields and feed growing populations.

Scarecrow is the first gene discovered to control a special leaf structure, known as Kranz anatomy, which leads to more efficient photosynthesis, the journal Plant and Cell Physiology reports.