Pheronym’s nematode pheromone focused solution again proven effective

Pheronym’s Fifth Peer Reviewed Study Shows Nemastim™ Significantly Improves Nematode Efficacy Against Pecan Weevils, Even in Colder Weather 

WOODLAND, CA, UNITED STATES, February 29, 2024– Pheronym®, an ag-biotech pest management company, announced today the results of their fifth peer-reviewed study, this one focused on the efficacy of the company’s Nemastim™ on improving beneficial nematodes’ ability to control pecan weevils.  Featured in the Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, the study entitled, “Enhancing Entomopathogenic Nematode Efficacy with Pheromones: A Field Study Targeting the Pecan Weevil” describes the increased efficacy in insect control, even when temperatures dipped unexpectedly below 10 degrees centigrade, levels that reduce the effectiveness of beneficial nematodes.  Successful biocontrol practices are a key strategy in reducing chemical pesticide use and promoting climate-resilient and regenerative agriculture.   Keep Reading.

Metrics for evaluating climate-smart technologies in agriculture are broken

Pesticides’ carbon footprint is massively underestimated. We need better metrics for innovative technologies.

Crop protection does not have one big bad wolf pesticide like fertilizers’ nitrogen. According to phys.org (12) “Manure and synthetic fertilizers emit the equivalent of 2.6 gigatons of carbon per year -more than global aviation and shipping combined.” For impact and climate investors going after one big problem with a significant impact is a no brainer. Calculating reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in terms of gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) is easy because there are many publications and market reports available for climate and impact investors (3). Nitrogen alone cannot solve agriculture’s carbon emission problem because the bigger problem, crop protection, is overlooked and underestimated.

Crop protection has many medium size wolves which collectively create more CO2e emissions than nitrogen. Furthermore, GHG emissions produced by pesticides are massively underreported for the following reasons (4). Keep reading

Startups to Watch: Pheronym Inc. is making advancements in pheromone-based nematode research

We are honored that Pheronym Inc. is one of 11 that made the cut in 2024 for the “Startups to Watch”. Each year, Sacramento Business Journal Inno reporter Mark Anderson identifies the top local startups set to make waves in the year ahead.

Best Real Estate Projects 2023: Sonrisa - Sacramento Business Journal

Davis-based Pheronym Inc. has developed methods to brew up pheromones that can control the actions of nematodes, whose thousands of species are the most abundant critters on earth.

About 20 years ago at the University of Florida, CEO Fatma Kaplan began researching ways to affect the behavior of pest microscopic roundworms by using pheromones, which are external chemical triggers that influence mating and other behaviors. Not all nematodes are plant pests. Keep reading

This article was also published in BizWomen.

 

CEO Fatma Kaplan sustains Woodland-based science startup Pheronym on shoestring with grants, fellowships

We are honored that our CEO, Dr. Fatma Kaplan is featured by SACRAMENTOINNO

By Mark Anderson – September 24, 2023, 06:56pm PDT

Fatma Kaplan has managed to keep her ag-tech company Pheronym Inc. doing research and creating products on a shoestring budget with a savvy combination of about $2.2 million in science research grants, incubator space and fellowship opportunities and less than $800,000 in investor money.

Kaplan has been artful in her ability to put together backup plans that offer the company lab space for free or very low rates. Keep reading

Hello Tomorrow names Pheronym a Deep Tech Pioneer!

We’re thrilled to announce we’ve been named a Deep Tech Pioneer by Hello Tomorrow! From thousands of applications their experts saw real potential in our solution.

Hello Tomorrow Global Summit is the cornerstone event dedicated to celebrating and accelerating deep tech innovation: connecting key people bringing solutions from lab to market and strengthening the deep tech investment network. 

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We will present on March 22nd at 2pm.  You can register here with a 15% discount code MEETUSINPARIS.

Please come and talk to us about our technology in Paris in March!

How biopesticides reduce carbon emissions in agriculture

Climate change is already affecting pest pressure in agriculture. A warming climate means pests have more reproductive cycles in a year and better survival over winter, leading to even more pest pressure in the spring. It also increases the risk of invasive and migratory pests and the diseases they carry (1). All of this adds up to more crop loss and food insecurity.  How do we deal with increased pest pressure? 

More synthetic pesticides are not an option!

Ninety-nine percent of synthetic pesticides are derived from petroleum (2). In 2021, 3.53 million metric tons of pesticides were used globally (3).……keep reading

Hosted a great UC Davis AI Institute fellow during summer

This year Pheronym hosted its second UC Davis AI Institute Fellow. We were delighted to see how third-year undergraduate student Willow Jungling, developed skills to be an independent scientist. Like many undergraduate students, Willow did not have the opportunity for hands-on laboratory training in the past three years due to COVID-19 shutdowns. This summer was Willow’s first laboratory experience.

We were impressed by Willow’s enthusiasm for learning. She improved her skills so fast. For example, within four weeks of the fellowship, she was able to plan and start her own experiments relevant to AI Institute goals with guidance and feedback from all of us.

We were glad that our experiences were mutual. Here is what Willow wrote about her experience. “1- I enjoyed being in a hands-on learning environment. Being able to watch somebody complete an experiment and then replicate it on your own is an amazing learning experience. 2- I enjoyed the independence. After training for a while, I was able to be independent and work on my own for select experiments. I feel that this allowed me to grow my confidence working in a lab setting. 3- I enjoyed learning about in vitro and in vivo fermentation. Being able to work with both types has allowed me to see the pros and cons of each.”

We have loved watching her progress. We look forward to seeing Willow do great things.

Hosted great summer interns from UC Davis

They learned a lot this summer, and we have loved watching their progress. Liam Morris, a second-year UC Davis student, spent the summer with us as our business intern. He helped us prepare newsletters, create blog posts, organize our customer relationship management system, and much more. Liam was also interested in lab work and gained some experience in our lab. He is a true entrepreneur.

He also felt that this was an excellent experience for him. Here is what he had to say about his experience he liked about communication: “1- Preparing a quarterly newsletter using MailChimp, analyzing how well the newsletter performed using analytics, and making suggestions for future newsletters to be more effective. 2- Creating blog posts detailing events and news articles featuring Pheronym for the company website. 3-The opportunity to work in both a business and lab environment.”

We look forward to seeing Liam do great things.