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Novartis and University of California at Berkeley Form Research Alliance, DuPont and Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. Partner for Crop Improvement

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

In a significant move to boost agricultural research and development, Novartis Agricultural Discovery Institute (NADI) has partnered with the University of California at Berkeley, while DuPont Agricultural Products and Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. have formed a collaborative agreement to improve crop varieties. The partnerships aim to leverage cutting-edge technologies and expertise to address global food production and nutritional needs.

Key Takeaways:

  • Novartis has partnered with the University of California at Berkeley through a 5-year research agreement valued at $25 million, granting Novartis rights to negotiate licenses for patentable discoveries.
  • The agreement will enable University of California at Berkeley scientists to access various areas of genomics and functional genomics relevant to agriculture.
  • Novartis may grant University of California at Berkeley scientists access to its proprietary databases, including data sequencing and map positions.
  • DuPont Agricultural Products has partnered with Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. to develop new crop varieties and crop protection products using Lynx's advanced technologies.
  • The partnership will provide DuPont with exclusive access to Lynx's technologies for studying corn, soybeans, wheat, and rice.
  • The $22 million initial agreement could reach $60 million over the next 5 years.
  • DuPont will utilize Lynx's advanced techniques to isolate genes that are currently inaccessible with current technologies.
  • The collaboration will facilitate the development of crops with improved agronomic traits, such as drought tolerance, and quality traits, such as oil content with greater nutritional value.
  • The University of California at Berkeley scientists will have opportunities in all areas of genomics and functional genomics relevant to agriculture, including gene-library construction, sequencing, mapping, and bioinformatics.
  • NADI will benefit from access to the University of California at Berkeley's scientists and their research expertise.

Statistics:

  • The 5-year research agreement between NADI and the University of California at Berkeley is valued at $25 million.
  • The partnership between DuPont Agricultural Products and Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. was initially valued at $22 million but could reach $60 million over the next 5 years.
  • The agricultural industry is expected to benefit from the advancements in crop development and protection products resulting from these partnerships.
  • The partnerships aim to address global food production and nutritional needs by developing crops with improved agronomic traits and quality traits.

Sources:

  • Novartis Agricultural Discovery Institute (NADI)
  • University of California at Berkeley
  • DuPont Agricultural Products (1007 Market St., Wilmington, DE 19898; Tel: 302/774-1000)
  • Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. (3832 Bay Center Pl., Hayward, CA 94545; Tel: 510/670-9300)

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