Development of innovative multitraits bioinputs with synthetic communities for Agribusiness

• Grant number: 24/18724-0
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Innovative Research in Small Business - PIPE
• Start date: June 01, 2025
• End date: May 31, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy
• Principal Investigator: Manuella Nóbrega Dourado Ribeiro
• Grantee: Manuella Nóbrega Dourado Ribeiro
• Company: Microgene Ltda
• CNAE: Atividades de apoio à agricultura ; Pesquisa e desenvolvimento experimental em ciências físicas e naturais
• City: Piracicaba
• Pesquisadores principais: Maria Carolina Quecine Verdi
• Associated research grant: 22/14708-4 - Development of a bioguided bank of microorganisms for inoculants production aiming a multi-functional consortium capable of providing NPK, AP.BIOTA.PIPE

Abstract

Microgene is a recently created company specialized in research, development and biotechnological innovations, which aims to contribute with innovative solutions for agriculture in a sustainable way. Faced with the evolution of biological inputs, the company was created to serve the agricultural sector with knowledge, technology and pioneering spirit, in order to bring solutions to the field that can add productivity and sustainability. Reducing the use of pesticides and fertilizers in production systems is increasingly common and the use of bioinputs is key to more sustainable agriculture: with less environmental impact, greater economic benefit and social well-being. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) reinforce the importance of agriculture producing sustainable alternative solutions to combat environmental and economic adversities. The use of biological products to promote plant growth and control diseases and pests has increased substantially in agriculture. Recently, the use of biological resources in Brazilian agriculture gained new momentum, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA) launched the National Bioinput Program, which aims to expand and strengthen the use of bioinputs to promote development sustainable development of Brazilian agriculture to reduce rural producers' dependence on imported inputs and expand the supply of raw materials for the sector. The global agricultural bioinputs market in 2023 was valued at between US$13 and 15 billion, including all segments: control, inoculants, biostimulants and solubilizers. The agricultural biological products industry sold R$5 billion in the last harvest. The sector in Brazil recorded an average annual growth rate of 21% in the last three years, a percentage four times higher than the global rate. Showing the market potential for these products. The most representative segment among bioinputs are biological control products, estimated at 57%.The forecast is that they should continue to represent the largest share of this market. In this context, the use of alternative sources of pesticides has grown in agricultural production systems, as well as the use of bioinputs for biological control of phytopathogens. This project aims to use the bioguided bank of microorganisms developed during PIPE phase 1 to be used in biological control in soybeans, using the biodiversity of Brazilian soil. For this, isolates of rhizosphere and endophytic microorganisms from corn and soybeans will be selected, previously characterized and molecularly identified during PIPE phase 1 (2023/2024) (2022/14708-4). Isolates from non-conventional genera will be evaluated: Pantoea, Bacillus, Rhizobium, Methylorubrum, Herbaspirillum, Priestia, Labrys, Paenarthrobacter, Pseudomonas, Pseudarthrobacter, Pseudarthrobacter in consortia composed of different taxa of approximately 5 bacteria with complementary growth-promoting characteristics, each presenting a main function, to 1. Abiotic stress mitigator, which provides N, P, K; and increase tolerance to water stress (exopolysaccharide and biofilm producers); and 2. Mitigator of biotic stress, acting in the biological control of soil phytopathogens, using their metabolites, aiming to induce systemic resistance and promote plant growth in a more sustainable way, with lower cost and less waste. After validating the selection of the best isolates, 1. specific probes will be developed for each strain, aiming at detection in the environment by qPCR, in a consortium and inhibiting biopiracy of these strains, 2. Optimization of the culture medium, and 3. Evaluation of the Storage Time shelf. Thus, the bioproduct generated in this project has great commercial potential, as it presents itself as an ecological and efficient alternative in the provision of NPK, drought tolerance and control of soil fungi, reducing dependence and costs on agricultural inputs. (AU)