Novel semiochemicals for crop protection through synthetic biology
Lead Research Organisation:
Cardiff University
Department Name: Chemistry
Abstract
Due to pressure on available farmland there is an urgent need for sustainably enhancing food crop production. One approach to combat insect pests is to repel or attract them using pheromone or other chemical signal baited traps, keeping them away from high-value crops.
Past attempts at the rational design of artificial insect pheromones have failed largely due to the highly specific nature of recognition processes in insects. Recently we have succeeded in producing modified aphid repellents/attractants through a strategic chemoenzymatic approach. One compound in particular proved to be a strong aphid attractant in small-scale laboratory experiments.
We intend to produce more of this compound to test its efficacy in field simulations and also to explore the activity of some new closely related compounds. Furthermore we will seek to commercialise the invention with prospective business partners.
Past attempts at the rational design of artificial insect pheromones have failed largely due to the highly specific nature of recognition processes in insects. Recently we have succeeded in producing modified aphid repellents/attractants through a strategic chemoenzymatic approach. One compound in particular proved to be a strong aphid attractant in small-scale laboratory experiments.
We intend to produce more of this compound to test its efficacy in field simulations and also to explore the activity of some new closely related compounds. Furthermore we will seek to commercialise the invention with prospective business partners.
Publications
Demiray M
(2017)
An Efficient Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Dihydroartemisinic Aldehyde.
in Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English)
Tang X
(2017)
Optimising Terpene Synthesis with Flow Biocatalysis.
in European journal of organic chemistry
Demiray M
(2017)
Effiziente chemoenzymatische Synthese von Dihydroartemisinaldehyd
in Angewandte Chemie
Loizzi M
(2018)
Nucleophilic Water Capture or Proton Loss: Single Amino Acid Switch Converts d-Cadinene Synthase into Germacradien-4-ol Synthase.
in Chembiochem : a European journal of chemical biology
Tang X
(2018)
Concise synthesis of artemisinin from a farnesyl diphosphate analogue.
in Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry
Pickett JA
(2019)
Removing constraints to sustainable food production: new ways to exploit secondary metabolism from companion planting and GM.
in Pest management science
Loizzi M
(2019)
Silent catalytic promiscuity in the high-fidelity terpene cyclase d-cadinene synthase.
in Organic & biomolecular chemistry
Johnson LA
(2020)
Modular Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Terpenes and their Analogues.
in Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English)
Valikhani D
(2020)
Immobilised Enzymes for Sesquiterpene Synthesis in Batch and Flow Systems
in ChemCatChem
Huynh F
(2020)
Accelerating Biphasic Biocatalysis through New Process Windows.
in Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English)
| Description | We have synthesised a range of new derivatives of a lead compound discovered during a previous award that received IP protection and we have worked to improve the scale at which these compounds can be synthesised. This work won Super Follow-On Funding from the BBSRC and has been succeeded by a further project aimed at taking this material to field trials. This work also led to several incidental publications as we worked to understand and improve the substrate selectivity of terpene cyclases for substrate analogues, including analogues that led to a truncated route to artemisinin. |
| Exploitation Route | We have received IP protection for molecules synthesised in the course of this award and hope to license this property once we have proven its utility in field trials. |
| Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink |
| Description | The chemicals developed during this work are currently being tested for their ability to protect lettuce crops from insect pests. We hope to use a push-pull system to protect plants without having to treat the crop itself. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2019 |
| Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink |
| Description | Super Follow-on Fund |
| Amount | £551,216 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/R019681/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 05/2018 |
| End | 04/2020 |
| Description | Rothamstead Research |
| Organisation | Rothamsted Research |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We have provided research materials. |
| Collaborator Contribution | They have provided testing facilities and expertise. |
| Impact | Novel Olfactory Ligands via Terpene Synthases Sabrina Touchet, Keith Chamberlain, Christine M. Woodcock, David J. Miller, Michael A. Birkett, John A. Pickett and Rudolf K. Allemann Chem. Commun., 51, 7550-7553 (2015). DOI:10.1039/C5CC01814E |
| Start Year | 2010 |
| Title | OLFACTORY LIGANDS |
| Description | The invention provides analogues of (S)-germacrene D analogue which have improved insect repellent properties compared to (S)-germacrene D analogue or which have insect attractant properties. |
| IP Reference | US2018271089 |
| Protection | Patent granted |
| Year Protection Granted | 2018 |
| Licensed | Commercial In Confidence |
| Impact | Further development has been supported by Super Follow-On Funding. |