Trees, vines, and bushes are plagued by pathogens causing over $100B in annual damage

Silvec Biologics Inc. was awarded a $174,964 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Project Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture to develop a proprietary process to control fungi using RNA interference. The SBIR program aims to support scientific innovation to build a strong national economy.

Under the award, Silvec will pursue four key objectives through January 2023. The company will identify small interfering RNAs compatible with its delivery vector that can silence critical genes in the fungus Botrytis cinerea in vitro. Silvec will also demonstrate that its vector-derived siRNAs can suppress the pathogenicity of B. cinerea in Nicotiana benthamiana in the laboratory. If successful in achieving the first two Phase I objectives, Silvec will then evaluate controlling B. cinerea preharvest and postharvest diseases in grapevines through greenhouse and field trials in Phase II. The results could transform U.S. agriculture by providing an environmentally-friendly alternative to conventional fungicides and saving growers billions annually from reduced crop losses and increased yields.

Fungi are of particular concern, causing 85% of pathogen-related crop losses. For certain especially damaging fungi like boytrytis cinerea, there are no varieties with natural resistance in its host range. As b. Cinerea is estimated to cause over $10B in annual damage, there is a strong driver for effective control solutions, especially ones more environmentally friendly than conventional chemical fungicides. Silvec biologics has developed a proprietary process that IT believes can be used to defeat a wide variety of fungi based on a novel delivery vector that has already been proven in model plants to provide resistance to viruses and bacteria. Silvec has identified 4 key objectives that must be overcome to defeat fungi using its proprietary technology: (1) identify sirnas compatible with its delivery vector and can silence the expression of critical genes in b. Cinerea in vitro; (2) demonstrate that its vector-derived sirnas are able to suppress pathogenicity of b. Cinerea in n. Benthamiana; (3) demonstrate that its vector can control the preharvest and postharvest diseases of grapevines caused by b. Cinerea in greenhouse and field trials; and (4) replicate the process for additional fungi including u. Necator. Objectives (1) and (2) are the focus of this phase i while objectives (3) and (4) are the focus of phase II. If successful, the results could be transformative for US agriculture and save growers billions of dollars per year from reduced fungicides and increased yields.