DuPont and Precision BioSciences Collaborate to Accelerate Crop Product Development

Genome Engineering Technology to Bring New Choices, More Options to Global Agriculture

DES MOINES, Iowa, and RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.- DuPont and Precision BioSciences, Inc., today announced a technology collaboration to bring higher-yielding agricultural products to the market faster. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

The agreement provides DuPont business Pioneer Hi-Bred rights to Precision’s Directed Nuclease Editor™ (DNE) technology to introduce and stack multiple genes that accelerate product development in corn, soybeans and other important agricultural crops. The technology aids in the discovery of new traits and allows Pioneer scientists to insert, remove and stack multiple traits at pre-selected sites in the plant genome, shortening the time it takes to bring new, high-value products to market.

“To meet growing demand for food, feed and fuel around the world, we must increase agricultural productivity,” said William S. Niebur, vice president - DuPont Crop Genetics Research and Development. “DNE technology gives us an important tool to efficiently develop and rapidly deploy improved traits such as drought resistance, pest resistance and increased yield into the Pioneer lineup.”

“DuPont is firmly established as a world leader in developing and supplying seed and grain products, and we are pleased to have such a strong partner in this field,” said Matthew Kane, Precision BioSciences CEO. “Precision’s DNE technology is becoming the gold standard in genome engineering and we believe it will greatly enhance the ability to introduce, remove or regulate genes of choice.”

Precision’s mission Leaving Pioneer.com is to utilize its engineered endonucleases to become the world leader in the field of genomic molecular biology. Precision’s proprietary DNE technology enables the production of custom-made homing endonucleases that can be used to safely target site-specific DNA breaks for genome modifications. Precision BioSciences is focused on developing its DNE technology to allow for the identification, insertion, removal or regulation of virtually any gene for therapeutic, agricultural and diagnostic applications.