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Descripción
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| The long-term goal of the Engineering Nitrogen Fixation project (NFIX) is to engineer varieties of cereals that require little or no nitrogen input and deliver higher and more resilient yields. NFIX technology will help small farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia to increase crop profits and overcome poverty. It seeks a durable solution to poverty that is environmental and economically sustainable. NFIX goal will be achieved by making the plants acquire nitrogen from the atmosphere rather than from synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. The strategy is to transfer to the plant the bacterial genes needed for the biogenesis of nitrogenase, the protein complex that performs biological nitrogen fixation (BNF). This approach has the advantage of developing a technology that is transmissible through the seeds and is generic for cereals. Phase I of the project (ending Feb 29, 2016) was an early stage proof-of-concept. Its main outcome was the expression and maturation of one functional, O2-labile nitrogenase component in mitochondria of aerobically grown yeasts. By breaking through the limitation imposed by O2 in the production of nitrogenase within a eukaryotic cell, we delivered enabling technology that is instrumental to engineer nitrogen-fixing cereals. Complementary activities to validate a putative O2-insensitive nitrogenase resulted in a partially reconstituted enzyme. Phase II for which this proposal is submitted builds on previous knowledge from Phase I. The goal of Phase II investment is to engineer BNF components in higher plant organelles and to assess their functionality. We will reconstitute the nitrogenase biosynthetic pathway, delivering concepts, knowledge, tools and methodologies for engineering nitrogen fixation in staple cereal crops. Synthetic biology, plant and yeast cell cultures, combinatorial genetic transformation of cereals and model plants, and biochemical complementation assays of resulting nitrogen fixation proteins will be the tools used. | |
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Internacional
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Si |
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Tipo de proyecto
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Proyectos y convenios de financiación privada |
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Entidad financiadora
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Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation |
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Nacionalidad Entidad
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Sin nacionalidad |
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Tamaño de la entidad
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Desconocido |
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Fecha concesión
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