Gene silencing technology and enzyme technology are key concepts for Ramesh Vetukuri at SLU’s Department of Plant Breeding. Ramesh’s research group was handed both the 2024 Innovation Award as well as a Growth Award from SLU Alnarp and Sparbanken Skåne. With the support of SLU Holding and others, he hopes to achieve his goal – of his ground-breaking research finding practical applications on the market within a few years.
Around the world, food production is confronted with various plant diseases that can threaten entire harvests. And because we need to secure the food supply, large volumes of plant protection products have to be used.
“But traditional control methods are often either not environmentally sustainable or not effective enough, or they are very expensive,” says Ramesh Vetukuri.
Ramesh Vetukuri uses the VLP technology that has been developed in his research group by his colleague Naga Charan Konakalla. VLP stands for ‘virus-like particles’ – small, stable protein cages that look like viruses from the outside, but which have no genetic material of their own. So instead of infecting plants, the content of these particles might, for example, be a double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) that is sprayed onto and absorbed by potato plants, for example, in order to fight diseases such as downy mildew.
“This works in roughly the same way as a vaccine, and the method is successful in a lab setting.”
This is known as spray-induced gene silencing technology, when dsRNA is absorbed by the plants in this way and blocks the harmful organism’s genes with a high level of precision, thereby preventing the infestation. The use of these fully biodegradable biopesticides could greatly reduce the need for unsustainable pesticides. And their development is very timely – the EU is currently aiming to halve the risks associated with and use of plant protection products by 2030, compared to 2015.
“The research will continue with outdoor field trials next season. If we succeed in finding ways to mass-produce dsRNA, it can be tailored relatively easily in the next step to fight various diseases in many types of crops in a sustainable manner. Further developing and adapting dsRNA as a biopesticide would be achieved much more quickly than, for example, genetically modifying crops to make them resistant to pests. Farmers all over the world would probably be interested!”
Together with Naga Charan Konakalla, Ramesh Vetukuri is also researching ways of using the VLP technology for enzyme production – research that the jury in Skåne described as “A true understanding of the potential of deep tech and science for application within an industry of great commercial importance”.
Enzymes can be used to protect plants against various diseases, increase their nutrient uptake or improve soil quality.
“Instead of using whole enzymes, however, we are exploring how to combine the active enzyme parts with virus-like particles (VLPs). By employing this innovative approach, we can significantly reduce production costs, while at the same time improving efficiency.”
Ramesh Vetukuri’s research is being funded by FORMAS, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, SSF, Crafoordstiftelsen and Partnerskap Alnarp. Whether he will divide his time between being a researcher and an entrepreneur in future, or whether he will sell his ideas to companies that are already established in the sector, remains to be seen.
“Either way, my goal is to contribute with at least one product on the commercial market, where it will really do some good! So much knowledge is produced in universities, but it’s important to create the practical applications as well. I can imagine that the techniques for the precision distribution of substances using VLP technology could also be utilised in personalised healthcare, for example, as well as for improving processes in the food industry.”
One patent application has already been filed, and two more are in the pipeline. The EU does not yet have a classification for the type of biopesticide that Ramesh Vetukuri is developing. But such a classification will hopefully be in place within a few years, in parallel with the first product being ready for commercialisation.
“SLU Holding has guided me every step of the way so far, and they have been a great help in bridging the gap between academia and industry. After all, even though I’m good at research, business and marketing strategies are completely unknown territory for me!”
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