Like many in agriculture, Trillium Ag firmly believes that all agriculture products should be safe, sustainable, and effective- especially crop protection products. Can biological solutions replace some of the most problematic chemicals in agriculture?
In the past, this has not been possible. Biological solutions, like dsRNA, are unstable and perform poorly compared to synthetic alternatives. Attempts to improve biologicals using lipids, have only resulted in additional costs and lack of bioavailability control.
Even seed traits, that have been the gold-standard in biologicals, have been challenged by the onset of resistance and are now putting tens of billions of dollars of crops at risk. A new solution is needed!
Trillium Ag seeks to provide the new gold-standard biological that is as equally effective as seed traits as it is as biological topicals- with a first-of-its-kind solution to for biologicals in agriculture.
Through the use of cell-engineering, Trillium Ag is uniquely solving the challenge of sustainable, naturally-derived multi-modal crop protection products that are as effective, deliverable and scalable as the synthetic chemicals they replace.
We have created a new class of biological nanoparticles made of natural materials to solve the challenges of delivery, efficacy and scalability that have hindered the past success of biologicals in agriculture. We call this new class of biologicals Agrisomes.
Using our exclusive platform to target and activate a pest or plant’s own naturally occurring processes, Trillium Ag has demonstrated efficacy in weed and insect, in both in vitro and in vivo models. These results have the potential to unlock a more safe and sustainable approach to farming—and vast new market opportunities within our industry as a replacement of synthetic chemicals as well as new methodology for seed traits.
Our flagship product candidates include both topical and plant trait agrisomeTM products that target the most difficult pests of major crops. Several other products are in R&D phases at our laboratory in Seattle, the biotechnology hub of the Northwest. With our exclusive intellectual property in RNAi and delivery, we are currently in collaboration with leading commercial and academic partners across the globe.
Our product pipeline is based on the breakthrough multivalent RNA based platform molecule (MV-RNA), a novel, highly specific, and more effective trigger for RNA interference. Starting in 2016, the MV-RNA RNAi was issued with patents in the United States, China, Europe, India and Japan and is the core RNA enabling a new class of surface-programmable nanoparticles made entirely of natural materials.
Trillium Ag's topical TraitSpray deliver stacked trait activation via a foliar spray. Temporary control over simultaneous plant traits and/or plant pests can be combined a single spray for emerging non-GMO uses. While still in it's early development stages, TraitSpray will enable growers with a new class of biologicals to optimize traits or target pests.
Our in-planta agrisomeTM complexes are the first-of-its-kind traits using multiple short self-forming MV-RNA's in a single transcript; maintaining unprecedented specificity, potency, and spectrum. These expressed MV-RNA based nanostructures spontaneously form surfaces of chosen proteins and/or protein/membranes resulting in bioavailability optimization to a target pest- enabling RNAi as a tool against plant pests previously recalcitrant in-planta material.
Unlike dsRNA, Agrisomes are based on the breakthrough MV-RNA molecule, an entirely new class of structured RNAi trigger (US Patent 9,200,276). Being the only 'structured' RNAi trigger, it is both the active ingredient and the scaffolding of the AgrisomeTM nanoparticle. While similar in activity to siRNA in their mode of action, MV-RNA’s novel targeting, specificity, structural, and IP characteristics overcome many of the key stumbling blocks for RNAi in commercial bio-agriculture.
The cornerstone to effective biolip-agriculture is in safe delivery of active ingredients. Agrosomes have an approach unlike any other. Using our novel RNAi architecture, we are able to control the surface properties of our biological products- thus controlling delivery in the field. This is a first-of-its-kind capability and fits perfectly with the diverse needs across agriculture- whether its targeting plants, insects, or fungus.
The AgrisomeTM platform's exclusive RNAi technology and aptamer-driven surfaces enable production through self-assembly. By using natural material and processes, manufacturing can be done in a wide range of settings. The single-pot expression and assembly of the Agrisomes is equally suitable as seed trait products or as topicals cost-effectively manufactured within industry-standard bioreactors.
Working internally and with partnering academic and commercial collaborators, Trillium Ag is advancing a pipeline of TraitSpray and/or AgrisomeTM Trait product candidates. Please check this section for announcements of our flagship products.
Trillium Ag is led by a team of scientists and professionals who were early pioneers in the field of RNA interference, years before this breakthrough discovery was awarded the Nobel Prize. Key members are among the first to have worked with RNAi in agriculture, while others developed biotech’s original RNAi sequence design and target optimization software. Today, our team is at the forefront of scientific exploration in bio-agriculture, working to develop better and more sustainable options for the success of growers worldwide.
Todd was the co-founder and CEO of OligoEngine, the world’s first online marketspace for custom synthetic oligonucleotides and a pioneering company in computational science for RNAi. He is also the founder and CEO of Halo-Bio, where he is the inventor of Trillium Ag’s core platform technologies, MV-RNA, nanoparticles, and aptamer-driven bio-nanoparticle surface formulation.
Paul is the former principal research scientist and an inventor at Targeted Growth, Inc. At TGI he applied genetic adaptations and biotechnology to a variety of commercial and emerging crops to produce significant yield increases that were validated over multiple years and in large-scale field trials. He is a recognized expert in biological modification for the fields of plant genomics and crop biotechnology.
David was the co-founder and managing director of OligoEngine, and has served as an advisor on investment and business strategy within Seattle’s biotech industry. He has co-founded, launched and led companies across a variety of industries, in both North America and internationally. David brings key expertise in international licensing, distribution and go-to-market programs to our team.
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