Originally published on AgFunderNews. Excerpt.

August 4, 2025 | Elaine Watson

CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology—sometimes billed as “programmable DNA scissors”—is still relatively new in the world of plant breeding. But with its speed, precision, and regulatory advantages in some markets at least (enabling more rapid commercialization vs crops classed as GMOs), it is gaining traction.

AgFunderNews caught up with Dr. Paulo Arruda, professor of genetics at the State University of Campinas in São Paulo, and founder and CEO of startup InEdita Bio, to explore how gene editing can boost crop resilience to drought and pests.

AFN: Tell us about why you started InEdita Bio.

PA: The way we produce food nowadays is not sustainable. More than 80% of the energy the human population gets comes from a handful of crops. And 20% of the grains that are produced are lost to diseases, mostly fungi and pests, although hundreds of millions of tons of pesticides are sprayed to control the problem. We cannot keep doing things the same way.

AFN: What’s the attraction of CRISPR?

PA: CRISPR allows us to use an enzyme, a nuclease that is guided by guide RNAs to a specific point in the genome of any organism and make small changes so that we can change a plant from a susceptibility state to a resistance state.

During the breeding process over the years, we’ve lost the genetic variability that confers resistance to pests and disease because breeding has been focused on [increasing] yield. But now we need technology to help plants grow in more challenging environments.

AFN: Are single genes typically involved in conferring these desired traits or do they involve multiple genes?

PA: Most of the characteristics involved in yield are what we call polygenic where several genes are involved. Each gene adds a small piece, a small percentage of the yield. But when we talk about disease resistance, a single gene can confer resistance to fungi, bacteria and viruses, but the resistance alleles of those genes have been lost in the breeding programs.

Let’s take corn as an example. Here in Brazil there are over 200 commercial hybrids with different genetic backgrounds that are grown from the south to the north of the country. So when you talk about drought resistance, for example, you need to take into account those different areas and regions and different germplasm, there is a complex genetic and environmental combination.

The beauty of gene editing is that we can play with a single gene but we can play also with multiple genes using multiplex genome editing [using multiple guide RNAs to target multiple genomic sites simultaneously] which can include multiple different genes or multiple sites within the same gene or multiple alleles of a gene].

We can also use this technology to add specific modifications on commercial germplasm, varieties and hybrids that are grown in a particular region.

AFN: I understand that InEdita Bio is looking closely at the microbial populations that live with plants?

PA: We use gene editing for developing relevant traits in plants, but plants are also associated with thousands of microorganisms that help them with nutrient uptake and resistance to drought, stress, and diseases.

For example, in Central Brazil, you have areas where you can go six months without any rain, but there’s huge biodiversity. So, the question is how? The answer is that the plants have developed mechanisms to survive, but also, they are associated with microorganisms that live in this area that help them to survive in poor environments in terms of nutrients and water availability.

So, we need to put together plant genetics with microbial genetics. This is the future of biotechnology.

And this is some of what we are doing at InEdita, genome editing to improve the association of the microorganism with the plant. So, you can do genome editing in the microorganism and you can do genome editing in plants and in the future, we’re going to see this merging of plant genetics with microbial genetics. Exploring this idea, I think, will help increase the sustainability of food production.

For example, we’re working on developing plants that better associate with nitrogen-fixing microbes. Soybeans for example can associate with nitrogen-fixing bacteria that produce nodules in the roots, and supply all the nitrogen through biological nitrogen fixation (BNF). In Brazil, the largest producer of soybeans in the world, we don’t need to supply the crop with nitrogen fertilizers because the nitrogen comes from BNF. [Brazil is known for very efficient biological nitrogen fixation in soybeans, thanks to widespread inoculation with effective strains of Bradyrhizobium and the selection of soybean varieties well adapted to symbiosis].

So, can we make other crops [which do not naturally form root nodules or enter into a symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing bacteria] that can attract bacteria in the same way?

AFN: How can you make plants that attract these kinds of beneficial bacteria?

PA: You can make plants that produce signaling compounds that attract the beneficial microorganisms and help them to grow and colonize and help plants to fix nitrogen. This is the future.

The post AFN: InEdita Bio on gene editing 2.0: ‘We need to put together plant genetics with microbial genetics’ first appeared on InEdita Bio.

A InEdita Bio, empresa de biotecnologia especializada em edição de genômica, e a Shull Seeds, companhia brasileira de sementes de milho e sorgo, anunciaram uma parceria de P&D para criar híbridos de milho mais eficientes na absorção de nutrientes e, assim, ofertar materiais mais produtivos e sustentáveis. A colaboração utilizará a tecnologia Trait by Design^TM, da InEdita, e a previsão é que os primeiros híbridos com a tecnologia cheguem ao mercado em 3 a 4 anos.

O trait que as empresas irão desenvolver promete revolucionar a cultura do milho no Brasil. A meta é criar um híbrido cujo manejo necessite de menos fertilizantes nitrogenados, atuando de forma similar aos inoculantes bacterianos do gênero Rhizobium, populares na cultura da soja a partir dos anos 2000. Lavouras de híbridos de milho com esse trait necessitarão menos fertilizantes nitrogenados, o que diminuirá os custos para o agricultor. Outros benefícios dessa tecnologia são o aumento da produtividade e menor impacto ambiental dentro da cadeia produtiva dos nitrogenados e em seu uso no campo.

Fundada em 2021, a InEdita Bio inovou no setor de deep techs de biotecnologia ao criar plataformas proprietárias que combinam bioinformática, edição genômica, IA, machine learning e outras tecnologias, para desenvolver diferentes traits de interesse em qualquer cultura agrícola. Através de solução tecnológica integrada, a InEdita pode criar plantas mais adaptadas a restrições climáticas, mais eficientes na absorção de nutrientes e no uso de água, além de mais resistentes a pragas e doenças. “A colaboração em P&D com a Shull vai impulsionar o desenvolvimento de traits biotecnológicos nos híbridos de milho da empresa, colocando-a na vanguarda das inovações baseadas em edição genética no Brasil. Nossas soluções têm o potencial de transformar a forma como produzimos alimentos, e essa parceria confirma essa capacidade”, afirma Paulo Arruda, PhD, CEO da biotech.

A Shull Seeds é uma empresa 100% brasileira fundada em 2016 com o compromisso de levar aos agricultores soluções tecnológicas que resultam em híbridos mais produtivos, menos dependentes de clima, mais sadios e estáveis tanto em milho quanto sorgo, por meio de pesquisa e inovação. Para isso, reuniu em seu Centro de Pesquisa um banco de germoplasma com genéticas de clima temperado e tropicais do Brasil e de diversos países que tem servido de base para seu programa de melhoramento.

“A principal necessidade do agricultor hoje é produzir mais com menos custo, e esse é o objetivo final da parceria com a InEdita. Trabalhar na redução de custos que os fertilizantes nitrogenados impõem é estratégico não apenas pelo viés financeiro, mas também pelos desafios geopolíticos globais”, analisa o engenheiro agrônomo Paulo Pinheiro, CEO da Shull. “Nossa visão sempre buscou posicionar as empresas brasileiras também como criadoras de tecnologia que irão contemplar as necessidades dos agricultores brasileiros, e poderão ser licenciadas para outras empresas, fomentando um ciclo virtuoso de geração de riqueza,” completa Pinheiro.

Sobre a InEdita Bio:

A InEdita foi fundada no final de 2021 e rapidamente reuniu uma equipe de jovens cientistas com ampla expertise em biotecnologia, especialmente em novas tecnologias genômicas. O foco principal da empresa é criar traits em grandes culturas agrícolas para melhorar a sustentabilidade da produção de alimentos em escala global. As principais áreas de interesse da InEdita incluem o desenvolvimento de plantas mais adaptadas às mudanças climáticas, melhorando o desempenho agronômico na aquisição de nutrientes, eficiência no uso da água e resistência a pragas e doenças. Ao priorizar características de alto valor econômico e ambiental, a InEdita trabalha em parceria com empresas de sementes para desenvolver os traits diretamente em linhas comerciais de elite, permitindo acelerar o desenvolvimento de produtos e introduzir rapidamente tecnologias inovadoras para os agricultores. A InEdita também licencia suas plataformas para empresas que atuam em culturas como tomate, algodão, canola e cana-de-açúcar. Apoiada por investimentos iniciais da Vesper Biotechnologies, um venture builder pioneira em investimentos em Biotech no Brasil, e da Ecoa Capital, pioneira em investimentos de impacto, a InEdita é liderada pelo CEO Paulo Arruda, PhD, e pela Diretora Científica Viviane Silva, PhD. A empresa conta com o assessoramento científico de Maurice Moloney, PhD. O programa de pesquisa e desenvolvimento da InEdita é supervisionado por especialistas altamente experientes em Propriedade Intelectual e em questões regulatórias.

Sobre a Shull Seeds:

A Shull Seeds é uma empresa brasileira de híbridos de milho e sorgo de alto desempenho com sede em Ribeirão Preto, SP, que se dedica a oferecer soluções inovadoras aos produtores agrícolas, contribuindo para a produtividade e sustentabilidade da agricultura global. Seu crescimento é impulsionado por pesquisas genéticas de ponta e um banco de germoplasma de classe mundial. O compromisso da Shull com resultados no campo tem sido reconhecido pelo mercado, permitindo que a empresa dobrasse suas vendas ano após ano desde sua fundação em 2016.
Para mais informações, visite:

https://globorural.globo.com/agricultura/milho/noticia/2024/11/pesquisa-busca-criar-milho-que-use-menos-fertilizante-nitrogenado.ghtml 

https://shullseeds.com, Instagram @shullseeds.

The post Parceria entre InEdita Bio e Shull Seeds busca desenvolver milho que utilize menos fertilizantes nitrogenados first appeared on InEdita Bio.

InEdita’s proprietary innovative platforms include:

•  On Target, a bioinformatic machine utilizing AI and machine learning to generate unique regulatory RNAs targeting genes associated with virtually any desired trait. This innovative platform is particularly valuable for identifying multiple key genes in disease and pest-causing organisms, significantly reducing the likelihood of mutation-induced resistance.
• MktEasy, tailored mostly for corn and soybeans, this plant transformation platform is tissue-culture-free and genotype-independent, delivering a high number of transformed events in a shorter time frame
• Cargo Delivery, a delivery platform that utilizes genome editing to insert regulatory RNAs into constitutive and highly expressed genes, enabling the modification of any desired trait.

These platforms will be employed to develop traits with Helix’s elite corn inbred lines.

About InEdita

InEdita was founded in late 2021 and quickly assembled a team of young scientists with solid expertise in agricultural biotechnology, particularly in new genomics technologies. The company’s primary focus is on creating high-impact traits in global crops to enhance the sustainability of food production at scale. InEdita’s main areas of interest include developing plants better suited to climate constraints, improving agronomic performance in nutrient acquisition, water use efficiency, and resistance to pests and diseases. InEdita aims to collaborate with seed companies to develop traits directly into their elite commercial lines, enabling them to expedite product development and rapidly bring innovative technologies to farmers. InEdita also oversees platform licensing for companies working on trait development for crops such as tomato, cotton, canola, and sugarcane. Supported by seed investments from Vesper Biotechnologies, a venture builder pioneering Biotech investments in Brazil, and Ecoa Capital, a pioneer in impact investing in Brazil, InEdita is headed by Chief Executive Officer Paulo Arruda, PhD, and Chief Scientific Officer Viviane Silva, PhD. It counts on scientific advice from Maurice Moloney, PhD. In-house trait development and collaborative project development are managed by highly experienced IP specialists and advisors on regulatory issues.

About Helix

Helix is a Brazilian seed company focused on developing high-performance corn hybrids, drawing on their extensive experience in genetics, breeding, and cutting-edge genome technologies, including genetic modification and genome editing. Helix holds a prominent position in the corn seed market, dedicated to delivering high-performance hybrids with increased productivity, insect resistance, and improved adaptation to environmental stress.

The post INEDITA-HELIX R&D COLLABORATION first appeared on InEdita Bio.