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New research shows gene-edited bacteria provides corn third source of nitrogen

New research from the University of Illinois shows that gene-edited bacteria can supply early corn plants the equivalent of 35 pounds of nitrogen from the air.

Study co-author Connor Sible, research assistant professor in the Department of Crop Sciences, says they tested products from Pivot Bio called PROVEN and PROVEN 40.

“We spent a couple years working on this project.”  He says, “Can we inoculate corn with a microbe and pull N out of the air, and not just pull it out of the air, but give it to the corn crop, and that’s what this study confirmed that was actually happening.”

Co-author Logan Woodward, who’s now a product development agronomist with Pivot Bio, tells Brownfield that new nitrogen source means less fertilizer needs to be applied.

“When I think about a nitrogen management system where we can utilize PROVEN 40,” he says, “I would definitely try to reduce some of your more inconsistent nitrogen applications and be able to supplement those through the atmosphere by tapping into that third source of nitrogen.”

AUDIO: Logan Woodward – Pivot Bio

Sible says it’s another way to improve nitrogen efficiency.

“The soil doesn’t always supply what we think it will, and our fertilizer sometimes is lost due to environmental factors.”  He says, “It makes nitrogen a tricky nutrient to manage, and we know it’s the most important nutrient for a corn crop.”

Sible says the research also showed a four to five bushel per acre yield gain using the gene-edited bacteria products.  

AUDIO: Connor Sible – University of Illinois