Scientists of the Far Eastern Federal University (FEFU) in cooperation with the Pacific Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry. G.B. Elyakova FEB RAS (TIBOKh) and R&D Center Agrobioeconomics (LLC Arnika) have found unique enzymes to protect crops from phytopathogenic fungi, reports official website of the Ministry of Education and Science. The discovery will create environmentally friendly plant protection, as well as increase their productivity.
More than 80% of plant diseases are caused by fungi. Phytopathogenic fungi cause many plant diseases and cause root rot. Researchers in the Far East have found a means of protection against such fungi - these are enzymes that will form the basis of biofungicides used to increase crop yields and safety.
The scientific project of FEFU and the company "Arnika" is carried out in cooperation with genetic scientists of the Pacific Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry. G.B. Elyakova FEB RAS.
According to the base Department of Bioeconomics and Food Security of the Advanced Engineering School (FES) of the Far East Federal University, scientists from the research laboratory of bioeconomics and biotechnology of the department, together with scientists from the Institute of Biochemistry FEB RAS, screened marine bacterial strains from the Collection of Marine Microorganisms of the Institute of Marine Organism FEB RAS and selected the most promising of them for further research on the ability to produce chitinolytic enzymes (substances that protect plants from fungi and harmful microorganisms). Then, based on the results of a bioinformatic analysis of the genomes of selected strains of microorganisms, they examined and analyzed in detail their chitin-degrading complex (that is, the ability to destroy chitin, which is part of the cell walls of fungi and insect pests), which in the future will help prevent various plant diseases.
Yulia Pentekhina, a researcher at the base department of Bioeconomics and Food Security of the FEFU NIS, explained that now the work is aimed at obtaining recombinant proteins and analyzing their properties. This will allow to determine the most active and resistant enzymes (or their complex) to fight fungi.
“Our development of highly effective biofungicides will improve the technology of soil and plant cultivation and increase their resistance to diseases, and, accordingly, their yield,” the researcher believes.
Project Manager of the FEFU Advanced Engineering School, General Director of the Scientific and Production Group of Companies "Arnika", Deputy General Director for Science of the Development Fund of the Innovative Science and Technology Center "Russian" Lyudmila Tekutyeva is sure that the development will be useful to enterprises and organizations of the agro-industrial complex. According to her, the development of biofungicides against phytopathogenic fungi was included in the group of projects of one of the priority scientific areas of the project of the Advanced Engineering School "Institute of Biotechnology, Bioengineering and Food Systems" of the Far Eastern Federal University - "Agrofood Biotechnologies".
“Together with FEFU and scientific partners of the Far East Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, we are working closely on projects in the field of green economy and plan to implement them in the agro-industrial complex of the Far Eastern Federal District and all of Russia. They will make a significant contribution to the development of the biotechnology industry in the Far East and enhance food security and technological independence of the country,” said Lyudmila Tekutyeva.