BioWorld International Correspondent

PARIS - Cellectis SA and Bayer CropScience NV signed an agreement for Bayer CropScience to apply Cellectis' meganuclease technology in plant research and the development of products for use in agriculture. Financial terms were not disclosed.

The meganucleases genome engineering technology by Cellectis, of Romainville, France, permits "editing" of genetic sequences. Meganucleases consist of sequence-specific endonucleases with large recognition sites, and Cellectis pointed out that the high degree of specificity enables meganucleases to bind and cut at a single point in a chosen genome.

The French company is able to design meganucleases for gene targeting applications, and its vice president of business development, Isabelle Pelletier-Bressac, said the deal with Ghent, Belgium-based Bayer CropScience, the Belgian subsidiary of Bayer CropScience AG, "validates Cellectis' approach of using custom-made meganucleases for gene targeting in plants."