DuPont Pioneer/Hexima discovered new insect-active gene

DuPont Pioneer and Hexima announced the discovery of a novel insect control gene that is active against certain crop-destroying insects and will help growers protect their yields. As growers struggle with pest pressure, new solutions are needed to maintain crop productivity. The gene comes from a unique genetic resource pool, and therefore, offers a promising new way to protect crops globally from the devastating damage that occurs when insect feeding goes uncontrolled.
 

The Pioneer and Hexima collaboration has been focused on finding new gene sources for insect control to help delay the onset of resistance development in insect populations. Iowa-based Pioneer and Melbourne-based Hexima formed a gene discovery research collaboration in 2014 to investigate new, untapped pools of genes that control insect-feeding on farmer crops.
 

“We are very pleased with the results to-date, with this collaboration which applies a unique and innovative approach to new insect active discovery. We are very excited for the future of this research partnership,” said Neal Gutterson, DuPont Pioneer, Research Vice President. “Our goal is to use our combined expertise to create a very effective and lasting control tool for farmers, globally.”
 

“The research collaboration between DuPont Pioneer and Hexima is focusing on developing new insect control technologies to protect crops from damaging insect feeding. We are working to deliver traits of novel mode-of-action with effective crop protection and durability,” said Nicole Van Der Weerden, Hexima Ltd., CEO.
 

Corn rootworms are estimated to cause in excess of $1 billion in losses annually in the United States alone, while leaf and ear feeding insects are estimated to cause $4 billion in losses globally each year. Effective and durable solutions require the incorporation of new modes-of-action insect control, such as the one recently discovered through this collaboration.