SBIR Phase I: Controlling plant pathogens with novel seed treatments based on nematode-produced ascarosides

SBIR 第一阶段：通过基于线虫产生的蛔苷的新型种子处理来控制植物病原体

• 批准号: 1843116
• 负责人: Murli Manohar
• 金额: $ 22.49万
• 依托单位: Ascribe Bioscience Inc.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-02-01 至 2020-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1843116&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Controlling; plant; pathogens

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to develop a novel seed treatment technology for plants, based on small naturally occurring molecules proven to activate natural defenses against a wide range of agriculturally important pathogens. The proposed innovation as a plant protectant is active at very low concentrations (nM range), can be readily synthesized in large quantities, and is biodegradable and non-toxic. To feed a projected world population of over 9 billion people in 2050, innovation will be required at all stages of crop production and distribution. Annual application of more than 600 different chemical pesticides (500 million Kg) costs $10 billion, and yet 37% of all crops are still destroyed by pests (insects 13%, pathogens 12%, weeds 12%). By providing an alternative, effective method for managing transmissible diseases in major crops, dependence on existing agrochemicals such as copper, synthetic fungicides and antibiotics will be reduced, as will the rate of resistance development. The goal is to improve the economic and environmental sustainability of agriculture by reducing the use of potentially harmful pesticides, and significantly enhance food security worldwide. The intellectual merit of this SBIR project is to develop a novel control for plant pathogens by leveraging a class of small, naturally occurring molecules that elicit specific immune responses in plants. These small molecules are recognized by plants at extremely low concentrations, and their perception has been demonstrated to result in defense responses and enhanced resistance to viral, bacterial, oomycete, and fungal pathogens, in Arabidopsis, tomato, potato, barley, and wheat. In order to bring the innovation to market in the form of a commercial seed treatment, the following must be demonstrated: a seed-coating formulation capable of long-term stability and efficacy, without adverse effect on seed germination or natural microbe/insect populations. The focus of the proposed Phase I project will be to optimize synthesis of the compound of interest and develop a stable, commercially viable formulation that is effective across a breadth of crops. Following initial validation, product testing will advance to in vivo efficacy testing in greenhouse and field trials. The seed treatment product developed will establish the technical and economic feasibility of using small-molecule signals to activate plant immune responses, and demonstrate their utility to improve economic and environmental sustainability of agriculture.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发一种新型的植物种子处理技术，该技术基于天然存在的小分子，经证明可以激活对广泛的农业重要病原体的天然防御。作为植物保护剂的拟议创新在非常低的浓度（nM范围）下具有活性，可以容易地大量合成，并且是可生物降解的和无毒的。为了在2050年养活预计超过90亿的世界人口，作物生产和分配的各个阶段都需要创新。每年使用600多种不同的化学杀虫剂（5亿公斤）耗资100亿美元，但仍有37%的作物被害虫摧毁（昆虫13%，病原体12%，杂草12%）。通过提供一种替代的、有效的方法来管理主要作物中的传染性疾病，对铜、合成杀真菌剂和抗生素等现有农用化学品的依赖将减少，抗药性的发展速度也将减少。其目标是通过减少使用可能有害的农药来提高农业的经济和环境可持续性，并大大加强全世界的粮食安全。这个SBIR项目的智力价值是开发一种新的控制植物病原体，利用一类小的，天然存在的分子，引起植物的特异性免疫反应。这些小分子在极低浓度下被植物识别，并且它们的感知已被证明导致拟南芥、番茄、马铃薯、大麦和小麦中对病毒、细菌、卵菌和真菌病原体的防御反应和增强的抗性。为了将创新以商业种子处理的形式推向市场，必须证明以下内容：种子包衣制剂能够长期稳定和有效，对种子发芽或天然微生物/昆虫种群没有不利影响。拟议的第一阶段项目的重点将是优化感兴趣的化合物的合成，并开发一种稳定的、商业上可行的制剂，该制剂对各种作物都有效。在初步验证之后，产品测试将推进到温室和田间试验中的体内功效测试。开发的种子处理产品将确立使用小分子信号激活植物免疫反应的技术和经济可行性，并证明其在提高农业经济和环境可持续性方面的实用性。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。