Dow AgroSciences LLC has entered into two research agreements with Chlorogen, Inc. that could lead to commercial licenses to use chloroplast transformation technology in Dow AgroSciences' animal health and agricultural biotechnology businesses.

Chloroplast transformation technology (CTT(TM)) is a unique method for expressing foreign genes in plant cells. While current methods involve placing a foreign gene in the cell nucleus, CTT transforms the genome of the approximately 100 chloroplasts within the cell. Each chloroplast contains about 100 copies of the chloroplast's genetic material, so the amount of protein produced in a single cell is increased exponentially. Furthermore, because chloroplasts are inherited maternally they are not functional in plants' pollen. Therefore concern about spreading novel genes through pollen is greatly diminished.

Under one research agreement, Dow AgroSciences will work with Chlorogen to use CTT to produce animal health products in plant cell cultures. Dow AgroSciences is pursuing the advancement of this technology to bring forth a new generation of animal health vaccines. This agreement includes an option for an exclusive license to use Chlorogen's patented technology in the animal health, plant cell-culture arena.

Under a separate agreement, the two companies will collaborate to express Dow AgroSciences' proprietary traits in agricultural crops using CTT. Exploratory research will be conducted initially with tobacco plants, which could lead to Dow AgroSciences licensing the technology for future crop improvement products.

"We are very excited about these opportunities to collaborate with Chlorogen to explore the potential of chloroplast transformation," said Dan Kittle, vice president of R&D for Dow AgroSciences. "We believe this technology may be applicable to advancing projects that address a number of our business interests."

"We believe that chloroplast transformation technology can be an important tool to improve the efficiency of existing biotechnology platforms," said David N. Duncan, Chlorogen's president and CEO. "We look forward to collaborating with Dow AgroSciences researchers. This is a major step forward for our young company."

Chlorogen, with headquarters in St. Louis, MO, is a biopharmaceutical company committed to using its patented chloroplast transformation technology to become a world-class provider of beneficial proteins for human therapy. In addition to developing its own pharmaceutical pipeline, the company, founded in 2001, is pursuing collaborative arrangements for other applications of the technology, which was developed and patented by the company's technical founder, Dr. Henry Daniell at the University of Central Florida.

Dow AgroSciences LLC, based in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, is a global leader in providing pest management, agricultural seed and biotechnology products that improve the quality and quantity of the earth's food supply and contribute to the health and quality of life of the world's growing population. Dow AgroSciences has approximately 5,500 people in more than 50 countries dedicated to its business, and has worldwide sales of US $3.4 billion. Dow AgroSciences is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company.