DuPont DD recently declared a strategic alliance with Caribou Biosciences, a leading developer of CRISPR-Cas technologies for genome editing. Per the agreement, both companies granted license to each other for their respective proprietary portfolios. However, financial terms of the deal were not revealed.
With this agreement, DuPont was granted exclusive intellectual property rights for CRISPR-Cas technology applications in major row crops, and non-exclusive rights in other agricultural and industrial bioscience applications. Moreover, the alliance includes a multi-year research collaboration according to which, scientists from both the companies will work extensively for improving the breadth, versatility and efficiency of the core CRISPR-Cas toolkit. In order to boost its working relationship with Caribou, DuPont has also made a minority equity investment in the company.
The CRISPR-Cas technology can make exact changes to the DNA of most organisms and can therefore be applied in plants to resist drought and disease. Thus, it is useful for protecting plant health and increasing crop yields. CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) is a trait that naturally exists in bacteria, offering protection against viruses. Scientists from DuPont were among the first ones to identify its ability. The technology has other benefits such as removing food allergens and improving the nutrient content of plant-derived oils.
According to James C. Borel, executive vice president, DuPont, through this alliance, the company aims to lead in the application of CRISPR-Cas technology for enhancing agricultural productivity and food security. Moreover, DuPont feels that this technology has the potential to improve plant breeding and widen the portfolio of agricultural solutions available to farmers.
Additionally, this collaboration represents a milestone for DuPont as an early adopter and leader in the CRISPR-Cas field. The alliance further complements DuPont’s own portfolio of technology and applications, and adds to the previously announced licensing and collaboration agreements with Vilnius University.
Shares of DuPont rose as much as around 2.4% in the trading session following the announcement on Oct 8, closing the day at $56.13.
Zacks Rank
DuPont currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).
Better-ranked companies in the diversified chemical space include Koppers Holdings Inc. KOP, Arkema S.A. ARKAY and Celanese Corporation CE. While Koppers Holdings sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), both Arkema and Celanese carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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