B-COS - Chitooligosaccharides for customized crop protection

Due to public concern and challenges on resistance of pests and diseases in the field, there is an need to develop new, innovative crop protection products.  The Centre for Synthetic Biology, under the supervision of Professor Marjan De Mey, developed a technology platform to synthesize chitooligosaccharides (COS) of different size and structure.

First proof of concepts of our COS compounds were delivered in crops under the guidance of Professor Kris Audenaert.

The platform will be spinned out in the coming months providing  sustainable and cost-effective biological alternatives. The spin off, entitled B-COS will produce specific and defined chitooligosaccharides (COS) via an efficient fermentation platform, using engineered bacterial strains as microbial cell factories for specific COS-production.

In view of incorporation, the B-COS concept recently received the first UGent acceleration funding from the Industrial Research Fund (UGent) to accelerate towards incorporation and further derisk the technology and product. The trajectory is supported by the business development centers Biomolecules and CropFit.