Imagine finding a 'genetic time machine' in frozen Arctic soil that shows how microbes survived ancient heatwaves. Scientists are digging up these old survival secrets and plugging them into modern bacteria. It's like giving today's plants and factories a set of ancient armor to survive extreme droughts and heat.
Modern crops and industrial microbes lack the genetic traits to survive extreme heat and drought, leading to agricultural losses and a reliance on fossil-based chemicals for industrial stability.
A paleogenomic platform that reconstructs ancient DNA and a library of 30+ synthesized ancient gene variants tested in bacterial chassis for increased stress tolerance.
If you are a bio-inoculant producer dealing with crop failure on marginal agricultural land — this project developed engineered root-colonizing bacteria that produce humidifying polysaccharides. This helps plants retain moisture and survive drought, reducing the need for irrigation.
If you are a chemical manufacturer dealing with fossil-fuel dependency for surfactants — this project developed engineered Pseudomonas putida strains to produce betaines. These bio-based alternatives can be used in metalworking fluids and industrial cleaning products.
If you are a biotech firm dealing with unstable bio-inks for organ-on-chip systems — this project developed high-performance polysaccharides and betaines. These molecules provide the necessary structural and protective properties for advanced drug delivery systems.
Based on available project data, specific pricing or implementation costs are not provided; the project is currently in the research and validation phase.
The project has already achieved gram-scale quantities of purified proteins. Further scaling for industrial bioproduction is a target objective using Pseudomonas putida strains.
Based on available project data, the specific licensing model is not disclosed, but the project involves 6 industry partners, including 6 SMEs, who are likely involved in the commercialization pathway.
The project aims to provide policy-relevant insights to update the regulatory framework for microbial biotechnology specifically for climate adaptation.
The project period runs from 2023-12-01 to 2027-11-30, suggesting that fully validated commercial products would likely emerge toward the end of this window.
The consortium is highly balanced for commercialization, featuring a 40% industry ratio with 6 SMEs and 6 larger industrial partners. With 15 partners across 11 countries, the project combines deep academic research from 7 universities with practical application capabilities, ensuring that the transition from paleogenomic discovery to industrial bioproducts is supported by market-facing entities.
Contact the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) regarding the TOLERATE project.
Contact SciTransfer to identify specific licensing opportunities for the reconstructed ancient stress-resilience genes.
