February 22, 2007

Monsanto to offer free access to its soybean cyst nematode marker technology

Monsanto announced that it would provide academic researchers and public institutions free access to its state-of-the-art cyst nematode marker technology.

By sharing the technology, the company wants researchers around the world to be able to identify resistant soybeans and breed for them, said Bob Reiter, vice president of Breeding Technology for Monsanto.

According to the USDA, soybean cyst nematode has threatened the US crop since the 1950s, reducing returns to soybean producers by US$500 million each year and yields by as much as 75 percent.

The availability of this genetic marker technology would spur more research in the area of cyst nematode resistance and benefit the US soybean industry and soybean farmers, Reiter said.

Academic researchers and public institutions that request access would be provided with a royalty-free licence for using the rhg1 marker under a patent that was granted to Monsanto in December 2006.