Yield10 Bioscience Announces Results of 2019 Field Test Program
March 19 2020 - 4:02PM
Yield10 Bioscience, Inc. (Nasdaq:YTEN), an agricultural bioscience
company, today announced the results from field tests conducted in
the 2019 growing season in the United States and Canada.
Data from the field tests suggest that novel traits can be
successfully deployed in the oil biosynthesis pathway using CRISPR
genome-editing technology to boost seed oil content in Camelina.
Additional results recorded in the field studies suggest that the
activity and expression of trait C3004 can boost photosynthetic
efficiency in Camelina, an outcome that supports further field work
in 2020. Permitting is underway to continue the testing of these
traits and for testing of several traits in Camelina and canola in
2020 field tests in the U.S. and Canada, with planting expected to
begin in the second quarter.
Highlights of 2019 Field Test Program
and Plans for 2020 Field Tests
For the first time, Yield10 field tested CRISPR genome-edited
Camelina plants possessing combinations of edits to three genes
(“triple edit” of C3008a, C3008b and C3009) at sites in the
U.S. Yield10 received confirmation in 2018 that USDA-APHIS
does not consider these to be regulated pursuant to 7 CFR part
340.
- The best genome-edited Camelina plants exhibited good
agronomics including germination, stand establishment and seed
formation.
- Edits to certain combinations of the three genes in the oil
biosynthesis pathway produced an increase in oil content in
individual seeds as well as an increase in seed oil content as a
percentage of seed weight, as compared to wild type plants.
- The best performing Camelina line (E3902) produced an average
11.8 percent increase in oil per individual seed, an 8.7 percent
increase in individual seed weight, and a 4.7 percent increase in
seed oil content as a percentage of seed weight.
- No significant change in oil composition was observed.
- The best performing line will be field tested again in 2020 at
sites in the U.S. and seed bulk-up will be performed to enable the
planting of larger trials in 2021.
Yield10 also conducted field tests at sites in Canada, where
field and weather conditions throughout the season posed a
challenge to collecting seed yield data.
Yield10 field tested for the first time the C3004 yield trait in
Camelina at sites in Canada.
- In 2019 field trials, photosynthetic measurements were taken
during the growing season on C3004 Camelina lines at similar
developmental stages. When tested, five lines showed statistically
significant increases in several important photosynthetic
parameters for plants, including carbon dioxide fixation, electron
transport rate, and the conversion of light energy to chemical
energy (effective quantum yield).
- While field conditions throughout Western Canada were harsh
throughout the growing season including severe drought, there were
indications that the C3004 plants produced more seed than wildtype
Camelina. However, substantial variability among the test plots
under these severe conditions complicated the collection of
statistically significant seed yield data from the
study.
- In prior greenhouse studies reported in 2018 and additional
studies in 2019 C3004 produced increased branching and significant
increases in seed yield in Camelina.
- In 2020, Yield10 plans to field test C3004 in Camelina at an
expanded number of sites to collect agronomic and seed yield data;
field testing of C3004 in canola for the first time is also
planned.
Yield10 field tested C3003 in canola at sites in Canada.
- Substantial variability among the test plots caused by the
severe drought conditions complicated the collection of
statistically significant seed yield data from the study.
- Prior field testing in canola has suggested that C3003 can
increase seed yield by more than 10%.
- In 2019, Yield10 engineered approximately 15 additional
commercial quality lines of C3003 that can be crossed into multiple
elite germplasms of canola.
- In 2020, Yield10 plans to conduct seed bulk up for the new
C3003 lines in canola to generate field grown seed for future field
tests and to support development of the trait for
licensing.
“The promising field test results associated with our triple
genome-edited Camelina are a highlight of our 2019 field test
program, as they clearly demonstrate that we can use CRISPR to edit
gene targets in the oil biosynthesis pathway in plants to produce
an increase in seed oil content,” said Kristi Snell, Ph.D., Chief
Science Officer of Yield10 Bioscience. “Our work on this
genome-edited crop also highlights the internal capabilities we’ve
built to develop CRISPR traits. We plan to continue characterizing
this promising trait, as well as to develop and test additional
CRISPR genome-edited plants including new Camelina lines deployed
with the trait C3007, which we plan to field test for the first
time in 2020.”
“The photosynthetic data collected on C3004 in the field is
compelling and contributes important new information to the data
set we are collecting on this unique trait. We plan to retest C3004
in Camelina and perform seed bulk up of C3004 canola plants in the
field in 2020. At the same time, C3004 is currently being evaluated
in corn, soybean, and potato through major agriculture companies.
The broad testing of the trait in several crops should enable us to
assess the commercial potential of this promising new trait.”
“The recent growing season was especially challenging in the
Canadian prairies and affected our ability to collect and validate
certain seed yield data for C3003 and C3004. In 2020, we plan to
expand the number of field test sites in both the U.S. and Canada
to help mitigate the effects of weather and field conditions,” said
Dr. Snell.
Yield10 is developing Camelina as a platform crop to evaluate
new yield trait leads identified using our GRAIN platform. The
Company is also developing Camelina as an oilseed crop for
nutritional oils for food and feed applications and future
bioproducts such as PHA biomaterials. Boosting seed yield and oil
content will make Camelina an increasingly attractive crop for
farmers. Yield10 is also continuing to develop C3003 and C3004 as
performance seed yield traits in Camelina, canola, and corn, and
has formed relationships with major seed companies to test these
traits in other commercially important crops.
About Yield10 Bioscience
Yield10 Bioscience, Inc. is an agricultural bioscience company
developing crop innovations to address sustainable global food
security. The Company utilizes its proprietary “GRAIN“ (Gene
Ranking Artificial Intelligence Network) gene discovery platform to
identify gene targets to improve yield performance and value in
major commercial food and feed crops. Yield10 uses its Camelina
oilseed platform to rapidly evaluate and field test new trait leads
enabling the translation of promising new traits into the major
commercial crops. As a path toward commercialization, Yield10
is pursuing a partnering approach with agricultural companies to
drive new traits into development in crops such as canola, soybean
and corn. The Company is also developing Camelina as a platform
crop for producing nutritional oils and specialty products such as
PHA biomaterials for use in water treatment applications. Yield10
is headquartered in Woburn, MA and has an Oilseeds Center of
Excellence in Saskatoon, Canada. For more information
about the company, please visit www.yield10bio.com, or follow the
Company on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
(YTEN-G)
Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking
Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements which are
made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The forward-looking
statements in this release do not constitute guarantees of future
performance. Investors are cautioned that statements in this press
release which are not strictly historical, including, without
limitation, the ability of the Company’s novel traits to boost seed
yield, oil content, and photosynthetic efficiency in Camelina, the
commercial potential of any of the Company’s novel
traits,constitute forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking
statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those
anticipated, including the risks and uncertainties detailed in
Yield10 Bioscience's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. Yield10 assumes no obligation to update any
forward-looking information contained in this press release or with
respect to the matters described herein.
Contacts: Yield10
Bioscience:Lynne H. Brum, (617) 682-4693, LBrum@yield10bio.com
Investor Relations: Bret Shapiro, (561) 479-8566,
brets@coreir.comManaging Director, CORE IR
Media Inquiries: Eric Fischgrund, eric@fischtankpr.com FischTank
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