Market assessment of stress tolerant traits for field production of corn and development of proof-of-concept assays for rapid screening of targeted traits

Team Masters Projects 2007-2008

April 30, 2008

TMP Sponsor: Dow AgroSciences Company Advisors: Dr. Gregory Bradfisch

Consulting Scientist:
                            Dr. Bala K.P. Venkata

Dow AgroSciences LLC (DAS), based in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, is a top tier agricultural company providing innovative crop protection, pest and vegetation management, and seed and biotechnology solutions to serve the world's growing population. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company, Dow AgroSciences contributed $3.4 billion in global sales for its parent company in 2006.

Average corn yield rarely matches the genetic potential because of stresses imposed by the environment. Drought stress is perceived to be the most common contributor to yield loss. With the majority of the crop reliant on rainfall, a drought resistant corn product would help farmers stabilize yields. The goal behind the Dow AgroSciences (DAS) Team Masters Project is to refine product definition and screening strategies for developing drought resistant corn traits for the United States and global marketplaces.

The DAS TMP approached product definition and screening development for drought tolerant traits in three ways: (1) established a database of competitive intelligence, (2) statistically assessed the non-irrigated corn market by correlating soil moisture to yield, and (3) designed an experimental proof-of-concept screening assay to identify drought resistance. In aggregate this tripartite assessment will refine DAS product discovery strategies for drought tolerance in corn, coupled with a high throughput means of identifying targeted traits.