To improve traits in monocot crops, such as wheat, corn and rice, we need a unique model for both prediction of candidate genes and the validation of effectiveness. Ontario Genomics is providing seed funding for an academic-industry partnership to do just that.
Frontier Agri-Science Inc., an Ontario Agri-Tech company, and Dr. Dario Bonetta (University of Ontario Institute of Technology) are developing and refining Brachypodium as a highly efficient and novel monocot model system for crop development for their industry partner BASF. This project could ultimately lead to the development of plant traits with herbicidal tolerance in key food crops, and a valuable service that Frontier can provide commercially.
This funding has created further opportunities for Frontier to acquire follow-on financing from Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE).
