Farmers have to deal with pests, but nobody likes the idea of using more chemical pesticides. Thomas Laurent's company Micropep thinks the answer may already be in the plants themselves.
MicroPep is investigating how natural compounds known as micropeptides could work as an entirely new class of insecticide, which, if successful, could make the startup more effective and less toxic than existing synthetic insecticides.
Micropeptides are tiny proteins less than 100 amino acids in length. For years, researchers ignored the genes that code for these proteins, thinking they were too small to do anything meaningful. But they were wrong! Micropeptides are useful for a variety of things, including organ development and communication within and between cells. Perhaps most usefully, they can act as switches within cells, telling them which functions to turn on or off.
That kind of fine-grained control is extremely useful when fighting pests and pathogens. MicroPep's initial approach is most similar to that employed with antibiotics. The startup's first product can be sprayed on soybean leaves, where it waits for a specific fungus to land on the leaf. Once the fungal spores land and begin to grow, the micropeptides target the fungus' cell membrane, causing it to self-destruct.
If MicroPep can pull this off, the potential impact could be substantial. Agriculture is responsible for about a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions. Pests consume about 20-30% of staple crops. As the world warms, pests alone could increase grain consumption by up to 25% for every degree of temperature increase. In other words, pests make agriculture less efficient, and climate change accelerates pest attacks, magnifying agriculture's impact on the climate.
Still, the company faces some challenges before the first farmers can buy MicroPep at a supply store. First, MicroPep doesn't grow well in nature; if it falls into the soil, it's quickly broken down by enzymes produced by microbes. To address this, the company has been exploring different strategies to extend the lifespan of MicroPep.
First, Micropep is applied to soybean leaves above the soil. “We've found an optimized way to make it stable for a few days, but its persistence in the soil is extremely short-lived,” Laurent says.
To find more durable micropeptides, the startup developed a series of models that can predict the behavior of different candidates. This year, it will test 1,000 to 2,000 of the most promising micropeptides in the lab. From there, it will introduce the best 50 to 100 into greenhouse experiments.
“The final step to validate it is field testing,” Laurent says. “We're currently doing field testing, but the number of interesting candidates is much smaller.”
Laurent said the company is currently undergoing regulatory testing in the U.S., Brazil and Europe. MicroPep plans to have its product undergo regulatory review by 2026 and begin selling it in the U.S. and Brazil by 2028 and in Europe by 2030.
In MicroPep's next-generation technology, micropeptides will also help boost plants' natural ability to fight off invaders. But fighting off pests and pathogens can drain a plant's energy, just as fighting a virus can leave us exhausted. The key is to activate the right defenses at the right time.
Laurent said that to more effectively reach a diverse and widespread market, MicroPep will partner with different companies that can use its ingredients in its products, rather than developing its own products.
“It's a very fragmented market and very competitive,” Laurent said. “There are a lot of different crops – some farmers grow soybeans, some grow grapes – so you need to find ways to reach all those different customers.”
MicroPep recently raised $29 million in a Series B round led by Zebra Impact Investors and BPI Greentech Investments, with participation from existing investors including Fall Line Capital, FMC Ventures and Sofinova Partners. Laurent said the funds will be used for MicroPep's go-to-market strategy.