Supporting Work to Use Spider Toxins for Crop Safeguarding
17 Dec 2018
The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) is a key partner in a major new European collaboration using spiders’ natural toxins to sustainably safeguard crop protection.
The EcoStack project aims to develop and support ecologically, economically and socially sustainable crop production, by developing new resources to support agricultural biodiversity and existing ecosystem services.
Working alongside Newcastle University, CPI will provide expertise in fermentation and downstream processing development focused on the production and formulation of biopesticides, based on natural toxins found in arthropod species, including those from spiders and insects.
Many current chemical pesticides, such as neonicotinoids, are under increasing regulatory scrutiny due to the damaging environmental effects they can cause. However, the use of natural biopesticides offers a more sustainable approach to crop protection by reducing chemical inputs.
Certain species of spiders and parasitic wasps, which play an important role in bio-control of crop pests, produce venoms that are toxic to a range of insect pests while being non-harmful to humans and other mammals.
![The project will produce proteins at pilot scale via a yeast expression system, which will be isolated and formulated to provide a substantial resource for agricultural field trials of the new biopesticide The project will produce proteins at pilot scale via a yeast expression system, which will be isolated and formulated to provide a substantial resource for agricultural field trials of the new biopesticide](https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/crops.jpg?w=1920&h=1080&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559222659&s=95907f5adbf7865e95ba4d04973cff83 1920w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/crops.jpg?w=1120&h=630&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559222659&s=b3cdafe0215b681c53372adee150eb12 1120w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/crops.jpg?w=2240&h=1260&q=45&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559222659&s=878059e14e3197648bcacba94734a3e1 2240w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/crops.jpg?w=800&h=450&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559222659&s=6c509e054d0e88bd9fe9ebbb243513be 800w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/crops.jpg?w=1600&h=900&q=45&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559222659&s=2e569e76166d85d64669a904d6d218fb 1600w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/crops.jpg?w=480&h=270&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559222659&s=d1b9e07cc15d69c33e8692a75d1dd73c 480w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/crops.jpg?w=960&h=540&q=45&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559222659&s=c7a09ae7d4318ab157ad84464f5ea10c 960w)
These compounds are potent toxins when injected into pest insects by the spider, or wasp, however, when orally ingested, this toxicity is not observed as the toxin cannot pass through the lining of the gut to their target site of action.
To address this, researchers at Newcastle University have combined these toxins with naturally occurring proteins, such as a lectin from the common snowdrop plant, which acts as a ‘carrier’, allowing them to pass through an insect’s gut and kill the pest.
Collaborating with the university, specialists at CPI will produce these proteins at pilot scale via a yeast expression system.
The proteins will then be isolated and formulated to provide a substantial resource for the agricultural field trials of the new biopesticide, which are set to begin in 2021.
![Certain species of spiders and parasitic wasps produce venoms that are toxic to a range of insect pests while being non-harmful to humans and other mammals Certain species of spiders and parasitic wasps produce venoms that are toxic to a range of insect pests while being non-harmful to humans and other mammals](https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/spiders-web-plant.jpg?w=1920&h=1080&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559217063&s=e4b54a2e9617c34cb0534547ddf67194 1920w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/spiders-web-plant.jpg?w=1120&h=630&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559217063&s=24e5d58d2074694829946e70a776515a 1120w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/spiders-web-plant.jpg?w=2240&h=1260&q=45&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559217063&s=8de099e412ea36dcdb0f4d006ab29fea 2240w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/spiders-web-plant.jpg?w=800&h=450&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559217063&s=ed301790ea4f6e6eb28f40043b8c045e 800w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/spiders-web-plant.jpg?w=1600&h=900&q=45&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559217063&s=35162f2d5e632e437eaa76a023cdf7cd 1600w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/spiders-web-plant.jpg?w=480&h=270&q=60&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559217063&s=3e5221d30345bb8861b2c165a51a21a8 480w, https://optimise2.assets-servd.host/smart-hoopoe/production/content/images/spiders-web-plant.jpg?w=960&h=540&q=45&fm=jpg&fit=crop&dm=1559217063&s=1c861cc6e25b5bdc0008e6304cb1bb1a 960w)
The products created through this five-year international initiative, which is funded under the EU Research and Innovation Horizon 2020 initiative and consists of 24 partner organisations, will be less harmful and less costly, delivering benefits for farmers, biodiversity, and wider society.
“Having the opportunity to collaborate with subject matter experts from across Europe excites us, and we thoroughly look forward to using our expertise to add value to such an ambitious project,” said Jason Rose, CPI Project Manager.
“We are proud to have been named as a partner within such a large European-wide consortium.”
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