Development of novel semiochemicals for crop protection
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 it to repel or attract them, using (semio)chemical signal baited traps, keeping them away from high value crops.
We have produced modified aphid repellent and attractant semiochemicals through a strategic chemical process using enzymes. A novel and highly attractive aphid semiochemical (DMGD) has shown high field attraction to a range of pest aphids and has been demonstrated in field simulating studies as offering pest aphid control by the push-pull approach with the push against plant colonisation provided by the natural repellent, GD, in the isoprenoid group of natural products and the pull by the related DMGD. Opportunities for commercial scale up have been identified and can now underpin field trials for aphid control and commercial testing specifically against the lettuce aphid in the high value field production of lettuce.
We have produced modified aphid repellent and attractant semiochemicals through a strategic chemical process using enzymes. A novel and highly attractive aphid semiochemical (DMGD) has shown high field attraction to a range of pest aphids and has been demonstrated in field simulating studies as offering pest aphid control by the push-pull approach with the push against plant colonisation provided by the natural repellent, GD, in the isoprenoid group of natural products and the pull by the related DMGD. Opportunities for commercial scale up have been identified and can now underpin field trials for aphid control and commercial testing specifically against the lettuce aphid in the high value field production of lettuce.
Organisations
Publications
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
Huynh F
(2018)
Sesquiterpene Synthase-Catalyzed Conversion of a Farnesyl Diphosphate Analogue to a Nonnatural Terpenoid Ether.
in Methods in enzymology
Huynh F
(2018)
Sesquiterpene Synthase-Catalysed Formation of a New Medium-Sized Cyclic Terpenoid Ether from Farnesyl Diphosphate Analogues.
in Chembiochem : a European journal of chemical biology
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
Radadiya A
(2020)
Characterizing human odorant signals: insights from insect semiochemistry and in silico modelling.
in Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences
Huynh F
(2020)
Accelerating Biphasic Biocatalysis through New Process Windows.
in Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English)
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
Johnson L
(2020)
Modular Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Terpenes and their Analogues
in Angewandte Chemie
| Description | Synthesising enough material for field scale trials has proved extremely resource intensive, so we developed a fully bio-catalytic synthesis (manuscript now published) for the components of the push-pull system; germacrene D and dimethyl germacrene D. This allows a two step synthesis carried out in water using purified recombinant enzymes to replace a length(l)y chemical synthesis requiring inert atmospheres, repeated chromatography and a highly-skilled operator. Recent advances, mostly in reaction engineering to optimise the space/time yield have resulted in major advances in isolated yields with hundreds of milligrams of germacrene D and the attractant analogue now being isolated readily. Field trials have been completed and final data analysis is ongoing. Publications on this analysis are in preparation. |
| Exploitation Route | While of considerable use to this project, the bio-catalytic synthesis technique we have developed can be applied generally to the synthesis of terpene and methylated terpene products. As many natural hormones and semiochemicals are based on terpenes with additional methyl or methylene groups, this could have a wide range of applications for crop protection. Lead researcher on this project Dr Luke Johnson has recently been awarded a BBSRC impact acceleration account award (Dec 2023 until Oct 2024) for further work on commercial development of our modular chemical biology approach to isoprenyl diphosphate and terpenoid synthesis. This work is focused on scaling up the preparation of commercial interesting terpenoids for businesses to develop and test formulations for use in the field (crop protection). |
| Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Chemicals Environment Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology |
| Description | Advancing High Value Terpenoidal Semiochemicals for Crop Protection |
| Amount | £49,942 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Cardiff University |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 12/2023 |
| End | 10/2024 |
| 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 | 04/2018 |
| End | 04/2020 |
| 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. |
| Description | Video for Trio Sci Cymru on Youtube |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | A BSc project student (supervised by David Miller, CoI on this grant) produced a video in collaboration with Trio Sci Cymru to disseminate the idea of semiochemical based crop protection as a sustainable, environmentally benign, methodology as opposed to use of large quantities of pesticides through spraying. This video is professional in look and has been viewed 759 times on its still existing YouTube channel. Trio Sci Cymru were a welsh government funded organisation whose aim was to encourage engagement in science between school and university level students in STEM subjects. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pju-5zQb6gg |