Reference number : GC-2017-Q2-04319, amendment number : , agreement type : G, recipient legal name : Whyard, Steven (University of Manitoba)|Whyard, Steven (Université du Manitoba), recipient country : CA, recipient province : nan, recipient city : Manitoba, recipient postal code : nan, program name english : Engage Grants for Universities, program name french : Subventions d'engagement partenarial pour les universités, program purpose english : Herbivorous insects are responsible for destroying up to one fifth of the world's total crop production annually._x000D_
Chemical pesticides continue to be the most effective method to control insect pests, but unfortunately, the vast_x000D_
majority of these chemicals also kill non-target beneficial insects and can adversely affect other invertebrate_x000D_
and vertebrate species. New, environmentally-friendly methods of insect control are needed if we hope to_x000D_
protect both the environment and our crops. The goal of this short-term research project is to explore the_x000D_
potential of RNA interference (RNAi) technology to protect crops from some of our most serious economic_x000D_
pest insects without harming beneficial species. RNAi is a method of silencing a gene's expression using_x000D_
double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). By feeding insects dsRNAs that turn off specific essential genes, we can_x000D_
selectively kill pest insects without affecting non-target species. Due to RNAi's high degree of sequence_x000D_
specificity, the technology could be adapted to control many different pests in many different cropping systems._x000D_
Syngenta is a leading agriculture biotechnology company interested in developing a new generation of_x000D_
RNAi-based species-specific pesticides that will protect our crops to increase yields while protecting our_x000D_
environment from dangerous broad-spectrum pesticides. Canada is one of the largest agricultural producers and_x000D_
exporters in the world, and the development of environmentally-safer methods of controlling agricultural pests_x000D_
will not only place Canada among the leaders in the agricultural biotechnology sector, but will ensure that_x000D_
Canada's agricultural products are well accepted by all markets., program purpose french : Herbivorous insects are responsible for destroying up to one fifth of the world's total crop production annually._x000D_
Chemical pesticides continue to be the most effective method to control insect pests, but unfortunately, the vast_x000D_
majority of these chemicals also kill non-target beneficial insects and can adversely affect other invertebrate_x000D_
and vertebrate species. New, environmentally-friendly methods of insect control are needed if we hope to_x000D_
protect both the environment and our crops. The goal of this short-term research project is to explore the_x000D_
potential of RNA interference (RNAi) technology to protect crops from some of our most serious economic_x000D_
pest insects without harming beneficial species. RNAi is a method of silencing a gene's expression using_x000D_
double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). By feeding insects dsRNAs that turn off specific essential genes, we can_x000D_
selectively kill pest insects without affecting non-target species. Due to RNAi's high degree of sequence_x000D_
specificity, the technology could be adapted to control many different pests in many different cropping systems._x000D_
Syngenta is a leading agriculture biotechnology company interested in developing a new generation of_x000D_
RNAi-based species-specific pesticides that will protect our crops to increase yields while protecting our_x000D_
environment from dangerous broad-spectrum pesticides. Canada is one of the largest agricultural producers and_x000D_
exporters in the world, and the development of environmentally-safer methods of controlling agricultural pests_x000D_
will not only place Canada among the leaders in the agricultural biotechnology sector, but will ensure that_x000D_
Canada's agricultural products are well accepted by all markets., agreement title english : RNAi-based crop protection technology, agreement title french : RNAi-based crop protection technology, agreement number : EGP, agreement value : 25000.0, agreement start date : 2017-09-20, agreement end date : nan, description english : nan, description french : nan, expected results english : nan, expected results french : nan, additional information english : Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year (2017-2018 to 2018-2019)., additional information french : Subvention ou bourse octroyée s'appliquant à plus d'un exercice financier (2017-2018 à 2018-2019)., owner organization : nserc-crsng, owner organization title : Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada | Conseil de recherches en sciences naturelles et en génie du Canada