Calyxt, Inc. announced the issuance of European patent No. 3008186, which claims methods to create gene-edited plants by the transient delivery of sequence-specific nucleases, including CRISPR/Cas9. This patent, granted by the European Patent Office, is owned by Cellectis and licensed exclusively to Calyxt.
“Conventionally, gene editing is performed by delivering DNA to cells,” says Dan Voytas, Calyxt’s Chief Science Officer and University of Minnesota professor. “The DNA encodes a nuclease, such as CRISPR/Cas9, which makes the gene edit. The problem with conventional gene editing is that DNA can integrate randomly into the genome, creating off-target effects. For example, genes can be disrupted by the incoming DNA that you didn’t intend to disrupt. Calyxt has accomplished a precise method of gene editing that creates plants with the desired traits.”
Although Calyxt elected TALEN to develop its food products, the company is constantly testing new gene editing technologies and inventing new methods and approaches to edit plant genes. Calyxt’s intellectual property portfolio is also strengthened by having licensed from Cellectis two patents of a family claiming the uses of chimeric nucleases, such as TALEN and CRISPR/Cas9, for gene editing in any type of cells.
“Over the last eight years, Calyxt has rapidly grown, building a versatile lineup of gene editing technologies and a product pipeline that delivers healthier food products to consumers,” explains Jim Blome, Calyxt’s Chief Executive Officer. “We are excited by the continued expansion of our patent portfolio to include new tools to produce crops that produce healthier food while reducing input costs.”
