Fermentation for Bioherbicides

BOC Sciences provides bioherbicide services through our strong fermentation capabilities. As a leading CDMO and supplier of high-value raw materials, we offer secondary metabolites from microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria or protozoa that can be used as active ingredients in bioherbicides. We are also a fermentation solutions provider, focusing on fermentation-related projects to meet the needs of our customers in agriculture and other industries.

What is Bioherbicides?

Bioherbicides can be phytotoxins derived from plant extracts, or secondary metabolites derived from microorganisms, or they may be microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi and pathogens. Bioherbicides have been identified as an important biological control strategy as a sustainable, low-cost and more environmentally friendly method of weed control. Bioherbicides are naturally sourced products that offer many advantages over chemically synthesized herbicides, including a high degree of target weed specificity. In addition, the ability of synthetic herbicides to control weeds in crops has diminished due to the evolution of resistance. Therefore, biologically active secondary metabolites commonly found in nature are important precursors of herbicides.

Production of Bioherbicides

• Plant extracts

Bioherbicides produced from extracts of plants have shown promising potential for weeds. Plants are rich sources of natural products and have the ability to secrete a wide range of metabolites such as alcohols, fatty acids, phenolics, flavonoids, terpenoids and steroids. Among these, terpenoids may be potential compounds for the development of novel bioherbicides, as they show strong phytotoxic activity against different weed species.

• Microbial fermentation

Many biotechnological processes in the agricultural, pharmaceutical and food industries are based on fermentation. Microbial fermentation increases the bioavailability of plant secondary metabolites instead of using organic solvents to obtain plant extracts, avoiding solvent waste in plant extraction. The use of microorganisms as cell factories enables large-scale production of secondary metabolites such as flavonoids.

Advantages of Bioherbicides

• Specific action on target weeds
• No side effects on beneficial plants or human health
• No accumulation of pesticide residues in the environment
• Effective control of certain herbicide-resistant weeds
• Some mixtures of bioherbicides and synthetic herbicides have been shown to be more effective

Our Services for Bioherbicides

• Isolation and selection of microorganisms

Many microorganisms can be used to produce bioherbicides. Host strains capable of mass production of plant metabolites are obtained by genetic modification and high-throughput screening of strains.

• Fermentation

The production of bioactive metabolites is closely related to the formulation of the culture medium and the type of fermentation. The fermentative production of target active metabolites is achieved by methods such as medium optimization and process development. Fermentation is a promising biotechnological approach and an environmentally friendly industrial process. During fermentation, the biotransformation reactions of enzymes in microorganisms increase the molecular diversity of bioactive metabolites that can be obtained from the substrate.

• Downstream process

We apply Quality by Design (QbD) and Process Analytical Technology (PAT) to our downstream process development and throughout the life cycle of fermentation production to minimize inaccuracies caused by traditional analytical techniques. Apply a variety of downstream techniques including centrifugation, membrane separation, and chromatographic chromatography. Design and implementation of complex product separation and purification processes to reduce impurities and by-product retention.

Why Choose BOC Sciences?

• Improved host strains
• High quality bioactive secondary metabolites
• Large scale fermentation capacities
• Fermentation production process control
• Patented and proprietary manufacturing method
• Lowest cost of production