In this sentence:
Simply because they are genetically engineered does not make it any more likely for plants to become an invasive or persistent weed, according to a decade-long study published in the journal Nature.
(A) because they are genetically engineered does not make it any more likely for plants to
- Here Even if we correct the Subject Verb error, 'they' and 'it' will not necessarily refer to plants as this sentence does not require this reference to make sense. They are ambiguous pronouns with no necessary noun antecedents.
(B) because it is genetically engineered does not make a plant any more likely to
- Same as A
(C) being genetically engineered does not make it any more likely that plants will
- Same as A
(D) being genetically engineered does not make a plant any more likely to
- Here Being is used as a noun, This usage is one of the two correct usages of 'Being' in GMAT. This sentence conveys a clear meaning
More on Being here
being-really-the-black-sheep-in-the-gmat-family-166106.html#p1317985
(E) being genetically engineered does not make a plant any more likely that it will
- We do prefer 'likely to' instead of this construction because it is more concise.
Can't really say if it is idiomatic or not but Likely to X make more sense in this sentence.