Invention:
This patented invention is a method of eliminating or substantially reducing aflatoxin in crops by inhibiting Aspergillus fungus, a biosynthetic precursor to aflatoxin. By inhibiting the primary elements of aflatoxin’s biosynthetic pathway, aflatoxin can be eliminated altogether.
Background:
The inventor has conducted successful experiments using this RNA interference technique on T2 maize plants. The transgenic plants infected with Aspergillus strains showed either significantly lower aflatoxin levels than control groups or had so little aflatoxin that it was undetectable.
Applications:
- Commercial farming, where aflatoxin is a common threat to the humans and animals consuming the infected plants.
- Biological research, which benefits from any information about mycotoxins related to the genus
Advantages:
- Greater success with a permanent process compared to current practices, which require periodic reapplication, limiting aflatoxin production by up to 80%
- Avoids discarding or retreating infected crops
- Eliminates crop waste
- Low resource and labor investment for farmers
- Improves the health and safety of consumers
Status: issued U.S. patent #10,844,397
