DevGen

This article is about the company. For other uses, see DevGen (disambiguation).

Devgen NV

Type	Public
Industry	Agriculture
Founded	Gent, Belgium (1997)
Headquarters	Gent, Belgium
Key people	Thierry Bogaert, Founder, CEO Remi Vermeiren, Chairman Wim Goemaere, CFO
Products	Pesticides, crop seeds
Employees	248 (2009)
Website	[1]

Devgen is a Belgium-based multinational agricultural biotechnology company. It uses advanced biotechnology and molecular breeding technologies to develop varieties of major food crops with higher yield or superior envirmonental properties. Its technology is marketed by outlicensing or selling seeds in South-East Asia. Additionally, Devgen is active as a developer of nematicides.

History

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RNA interference spin off

Devgen was founded as a spin-off of Ghent University and The Flemish Institute for Biotechnology in 1997. Initial investment came from the GIMV investment company and the IWT. The basis for the company was the intellectual property it holds on the use of RNAi in nematodes and its use for screening for novel therapeutics and/or their targets (Patent: WO 00/01846). Therefore, Devgen was originally founded as a biotechnology company with a strong pharmaceutical focus using the nematode C. elegans as a model system. However, besides a disease model, nematodes are well known pests of major crops and Devgen also started a crop protection division for finding new nematocides and nematocide targets.

Devgen agrobusiness activities rapidly led to partnerships with the FMC Corporation (1999-?) and Sumitomo Chemical Company (2003-current) and later with Monsanto (2004-current) and Pioneer Hi-Bred (2004–2008), the largest and second-largest producers of hybrid seeds for agriculture, respectively. In 2004 it launched a second office in Singapore and moved into a new research building on the Ardoyen Technology Campus. On this campus also other agrobiotech companies such as Bayer CropScience, BASF CropDesign and the department Plant Systems Biology of the VIB are located.

Towards a seed company

In June 2005, employing close to 100 people, Devgen raised more than 30 million euro in a successful IPO on Euronext Brussels. Its focus by now had already shifted to crop protection. The first field trials with Devgen nematicides started in the US and Japan in 2006. These successful trials led to the launch its subsidiary Devgen US inc. in Delaware. In 2007, Devgen takes over some of Monsanto's activities in India involving distribution of hybrid seeds for 4 crops: rice, sunflower, sorghum and pearl millet leading to the establishment of Devgen Seeds and Crop Technology Pvt Ltd employing 70 people and headed by Bipin Solanki (ex-Monsanto) as CEO. In November 2008 Devgen closed permanently its pharmaceutical division, focusing on its more successful agro-business. Some former Devgen employees supported by Devgen IP continued its pharmaceutical research in the company Armakem NV. In 2009, Devgen announced that it sold technology rights to Monsanto for 20 million € cash. Devgen's nematicide reached maturity hitting the Turkish market under the brandname Devguard® for the use on Tomatoes and Cucumbers in 2009 and as Enclosure® in the US for use in commercial peanut production in May 2010. In 2010 Devgen has expanded business activities to India, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, the US and South-Africa.

Products

Nematicides

Devgen's marketed nematicides have Iprodione as an active ingredient. It is marketed as Devguard in Turkey for cucumbers and tomatoes. It has a good environmental safety profile and a short pre-harvest interval which enables growers to extend the treatment period. In the US on the market as Devguard for use on peanuts. It reduces nematode damage increasing quality and yield.

Seeds

ao. Frontline Gold RH 1531. A high yielding, premium quality, medium duration hybrid rice

Technology

RNAi technology

Devgen holds important IP for the use of RNAi as a method of making plants resistant to pests such as insects and fungi. siRNAs that target vital proteins of a pest are expressed in crops. After digestion of the plant, the siRNAs silence the vital function in the pest. In November 2007, field trials have shown that Devgen's technology worked in protecting maize roots against certain beetles. Devgen is also introducing this technology in other crops such as cotton and rice.

Drought tolerance

Climate change is expected to increase the demand to drought tolerant crops such as rice. Devgen has both a biotech as well as a non-biotech research programs to reach this goal. In March 2010 Devgen closed a partnership with the International Rice Research Institute to develop drought tolerant hybrid rice varieties and several promising biotech traits for abiotic stress tolerance (e.g. drought) and biotic stress resistance (pest and diseases) are being tested in the laboratory and the greenhouse.

References

Devgen 2010 half year results