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iDiverse and University of Nebraska Sign Agreement to Develop Novel Bioproduction and Agricultural Technology
Del Mar, CA, July 20, 2005 – iDiverse today announced that it has signed an exclusive license agreement with the University of Nebraska – Lincoln (UNL) to commercialize UNL’s genetic cell technology, which protects a wide variety of cells from debilitation stresses. Potential applications include the bioproduction of fuel ethanol, industrial enzymes, and biotech drugs; and the development of agricultural crops with the ability to withstand a broad range of diseases and environmental challenges.
“We are very impressed with the potential for this technology to enhance the bioproduction of a wide array of products ranging from fuel ethanol, to industrial enzymes, to pharmaceuticals,” said John Burr, president and chief executive officer of iDiverse. “Given the current high interest in fuel ethanol, we are going to focus our initial efforts creating genetically enhanced yeast strains with this technology and testing its ability to produce fuel ethanol at higher yields and lower costs.”
“With the US government’s goal of producing 35 billion gallons of alternative fuels by 2017, we think that this technology, applied to the production of fuel ethanol, can make a significant contribution to reaching this objective” said Dr. Prem Paul, UNL vice chancellor for research. “We believe that this technology will improve the production of fuel ethanol from corn, but will provide yet greater benefits to the generation of ethanol from biomass. Achieving this will be a significant technological accomplishment providing wide ranging benefits.”
“We are extremely pleased to be working with iDiverse in this area,” said Dr. John Brasch, UNL associate vice chancellor for technology development. “The iDiverse team brings the right mix of industrial experience, proven accomplishments in entrepreneurial environments, and successes in commercializing innovative technologies – all of which will contribute to driving this technology forward.”
About iDiverse
iDiverse, Inc. is a privately-held biotechnology company dedicated to developing and commercializing genetically enhanced cell lines for use in the bioproduction of fuel ethanol, industrial enzymes, and pharmaceuticals. It also provides genetic technology for creating plants that are resistant to a wide range of biological and environmental stresses. In addition, the company offers contract screening and testing services to companies wishing to asses their sequence libraries for stress resistance genes.
Contact
John Serbin
Chief Business Officer
iDiverse, Inc.
P: 858-245-9212
jserbin@idiverse.com