Both companies are hopeful of obtaining necessary policy support to further advance the technology involved
PlantArcBio Ltd, an ag-biotech company specialising in research and development in the field of gene discovery and biological components to improve traits in plants and Rallis India Limited, a TATA Enterprise, specialising in Crop Care and Seeds, have announced positive results of on-ground polyhouse trials in corn that were performed as part of their collaboration to develop drought tolerant corn and yield increase.
The main objective of the trials, conducted in India by Rallis, was to validate the drought resistant traits and yield increase of corn containing novel genes discovered by PlantArcBio. The results of the trials, which were performed in soil (in a polyhouse), showed that several genes, each integrated separately in corn plants by Rallis, resulted in a statistically significant increase of between about 60 percent to about 250 percent in the total seed weight of corn plants under drought conditions. This is in comparison to control plants that do not contain PlantArcBio added genes.
Furthermore, under standard (non-dry) conditions, apparent positive visual indications of cob yield were obtained, compared to the control plants in relation to some of the plants in which the company’s genes were integrated.
“We are excited to report these positive results which are a breakthrough in drought tolerance trait for corn, the world’s largest agricultural crop”, said Dror Shalitin, CEO of PlantArcBio, “The results show extraordinary ability of the genes we discovered to significantly increase the yield of corn under drought conditions. Our findings address global climate change challenges, most importantly drought and desertification, and the growing global need for food security.
Shalitin added: “In addition, the results strongly demonstrate the efficacy of the unique Direct-in-Plants (DIP™) platform developed by the company to discover novel genes, in a fast and significantly lower cost method, compared to computational computerised theoretical discovery platforms. We consider Rallis as a long-term strategic partner and look forward to expanding our collaboration in Asia, and work together to develop and commercialise the genes in additional territories via partnerships.”
“Rallis is committed to provide solutions to farmers through science. We are delighted at the opportunity to develop a solution for drought in one of the key global crops – maize.” Said Vairamani Ramanathan, Chief – Technology & Innovation, Crop Care & Seeds at Rallis “PlantArcBio and Rallis have worked very closely in a seamless manner to sift through the gene options, creating events containing different genes, evaluating them using lab assays and containment facilities. We are committed to evaluating these events thoroughly under field conditions and identifying the best solution for the maize farmers to tackle the drought stress. We are hopeful that climate resilience being a major theme in agriculture, we will be able to obtain the necessary policy support to further advance our technology”.
It should be noted that previous experiments carried out as part of the collaboration at the various stages of development, starting from the germination stage of the seeds, and including drought experiments in pots, also showed positive results.
In light of these results, Rallis intends to continue the development process, including the integration of the best performing genes into its elite corn varieties, and to conduct field trials to test the corn drought tolerance and the potential to increase crop yield.
In addition, based on such positive results, the parties intend to jointly approach leading global seed companies, to collaborate on development, licensing and commercialization of the genes identified as successful.
According to public reports, maize is the leading cereal in terms of production volume and is expected to become the most widely grown crop in the coming decade in the world, with estimated growing area of 196 million hectares, and production estimated at about one billion tons per year. The US, Brazil, and Argentina grow about 45 percent of the crop in their territory, while in these countries about 90 percent of the corn is genetically modified to improve various traits. The global corn seed market was valued at about $25 billion in 2018.
The continued growth in world population is causing an increasing demand for food, alongside a continuous reduction in arable lands for agriculture (which are limited due to urbanisation and desertification trends), and trends of climate change that make it difficult to cope with the demand for agricultural production. The combination of these processes creates a constant need to improve crop yields around the world. The drought resistant corn developed by the companies is clearly addressing this need.
These positive results, as well as former positive results published by PlantArcBio in relation to various genes, further validate its DIP™ unique gene discovery process, directly from any source in nature.
This collaborative project between PlantArcBio and Rallis is supported by the India-Israel Industrial R&D and Technological Innovation Fund (I4F), a cooperation platform between the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India (GITA – Global Innovation & Technology Alliance – the nodal agency in India), and the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA), Government of Israel, to promote facilitate and support joint Industrial R&D projects between companies from India and Israel, which would lead to successful commercialization and benefit for both countries. Both companies are grateful for this support.
