Rational design of plant systems for sustainable generation of value-added industrial products

Project Information

SMARTCELL

Grant agreement ID: 222716

Project closed

Start date 1 January 2009

End date 30 September 2013

Funded under

• Specific Programme "Cooperation": Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology

Total cost € 8 061 603,20

EU contribution € 5 901 866,00

Coordinated by

TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT
Finland

Objective

Plants sustainably produce low levels of secondary metabolites of high industrial value. However, they are often too complex to be economically manufactured by chemical synthesis. Advanced metabolic engineering and exploitation of plants as Green Factories has been prevented due to poorly understood metabolic pathways in plants and the regulation thereof. SmartCell brings together 14 leading European academic laboratories and four industrial partners in order to create a novel concept for rationally engineering plants towards improved economical production of high-value compounds for non-food industrial use. Although SmartCell focuses on terpenoids, the largest class of secondary metabolites, which exhibit extremely diverse biological and pharmaceutical activities, all knowledge, tools and resources developed in the project, are generic and broadly applicable to engineer any plant biosynthetic pathway. A systems biology approach using metabolomics and transcriptomics is taken to move beyond the state of the art. New multigene transfer technologies are developed. By screening and functionally categorizing genes at structural, regulatory and transport levels a comprehensive knowledge base of how secondary metabolite biosynthetic pathways operate in plants is developed. The case study component i.e. manufacturing a valuable terpenoid in an optimized large-scale system gives SmartCell a unique opportunity to directly make transition from fundamental science to application. For long-term exploitation an integrated database, compound library, cell culture collection and a genebank available for academic and industrial communities will be established. SmartCell provides new opportunities for SMEs and established European biotech companies, and the technology can also be transferred to other e.g. fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries. SmartCell will prove that plant-based resources can furnish the European society and industry far more than they presently do.

Fields of science

• engineering and technology › industrial biotechnology › metabolic engineering
• natural sciences › computer and information sciences › databases

Keywords

• genetic engineering
• large-scale production
• manufacturing
• metabolomics
• plant
• plant cells
• secondary metabolites
• terpenoids
• transcriptomics

Programme(s)

• FP7-KBBE - Specific Programme "Cooperation": Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology

Topic(s)

• KBBE-2007-3-1-09 - GREEN FACTORY – The expression and accumulation of valuable industrial compounds in plants

Call for proposal

FP7-KBBE-2007-2A
See other projects for this call

Funding Scheme

CP-IP - Large-scale integrating project

Coordinator

TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT

• EU contribution: € 1 508 209,00
• Address: TEKNIIKANTIE 4 A ; 02044 VTT ESPOO ; Finland
• Activity type: Research Organisations
• Administrative Contact: Kirsi-Marja Oksman-Caldentey (Dr.)
• Total cost: No data

Participants (18)

VIB VZW

Belgium

• EU contribution: € 675 377,00
• Address: SUZANNE TASSIERSTRAAT 1 ; 9052 ZWIJNAARDE - GENT
• Region: Vlaams Gewest › Prov. Oost-Vlaanderen › Arr. Gent
• Activity type: Research Organisations
• Administrative Contact: Rik Audenaert (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

UNIVERSITEIT LEIDEN

Netherlands

• EU contribution: € 505 540,00
• Address: RAPENBURG 70 ; 2311 EZ Leiden
• Region: West-Nederland › Zuid-Holland › Agglomeratie Leiden en Bollenstreek
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Ton Brouwer (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

UNIVERSIDAD DE LLEIDA

Spain

• EU contribution: € 364 725,00
• Address: Placa Victor Siurana 1 1 ; 25003 Lleida
• Region: Este › Cataluña › Lleida
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Josep M. Sentis Suñé (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV

Germany

• EU contribution: € 601 770,00
• Address: HANSASTRASSE 27C ; 80686 Munchen
• Region: Bayern › Oberbayern › München, Kreisfreie Stadt
• Activity type: Research Organisations
• Administrative Contact: Maximilian Steiert (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

University of Zurich

Switzerland

• EU contribution: € 184 125,00
• Address: RAMISTRASSE 71 ; 8006 ZURICH
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Enrico Martinoia (Prof.)
• Total cost: No data

UNIVERSITE CATHOLIQUE DE LOUVAIN

Belgium

• EU contribution: € 222 565,00
• Address: PLACE DE L UNIVERSITE 1 ; 1348 Louvain La Neuve
• Region: Région wallonne › Prov. Brabant Wallon › Arr. Nivelles
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Marc Boutry (Prof.)
• Total cost: No data

CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE CNRS

France

• EU contribution: € 448 004,00
• Address: RUE MICHEL ANGE 3 ; 75794 Paris
• Region: Ile-de-France › Ile-de-France › Paris
• Activity type: Research Organisations
• Administrative Contact: Denis Fix (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

ZURCHER HOCHSCHULE FUR ANGEWANDTE WISSENSCHAFTEN

Switzerland

• EU contribution: € 142 821,00
• Address: GERTRUDSTRASSE 15 ; 8401 Winterthur
• Region: Schweiz/Suisse/Svizzera › Zürich › Zürich
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Regine Eibl (Prof.)
• Total cost: No data

JOHN INNES CENTRE

United Kingdom

• EU contribution: € 275 619,00
• Address: NORWICH RESEARCH PARK COLNEY ; NR4 7UH Norwich
• Region: East of England › East Anglia › Breckland and South Norfolk
• Activity type: Research Organisations
• Administrative Contact: Mary Anderson (Dr.)
• Total cost: No data

KOBENHAVNS UNIVERSITET

Denmark

• EU contribution: € 185 852,00
• Address: NORREGADE 10 ; 1165 Kobenhavn
• Region: Danmark › Hovedstaden › Byen København
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Ivan Kristoffersen (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

MAX-PLANCK-GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSENSCHAFTEN EV

Germany

• EU contribution: € 140 802,00
• Address: HOFGARTENSTRASSE 8 ; 80539 Munchen
• Region: Bayern › Oberbayern › München, Kreisfreie Stadt
• Activity type: Research Organisations
• Administrative Contact: Lothar Grube (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD

United Kingdom

• EU contribution: € 146 906,00
• Address: WELLINGTON SQUARE UNIVERSITY OFFICES ; OX1 2JD Oxford
• Region: South East (England) › Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire › Oxfordshire
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Rufus Trotman (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

WAGENINGEN UNIVERSITY

Netherlands

• EU contribution: € 308 445,00
• Address: DROEVENDAALSESTEEG 4 ; 6708 PB Wageningen
• Region: Oost-Nederland › Gelderland › Veluwe
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Administrative Contact: Harro Bouwmeester (Prof.)
• Total cost: No data

PLANT ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES PAT SA

France

• EU contribution: € 120 125,00
• Address: AVENUE DE LA FORET DE LA HAYE 19 ; 54500 Vandoeuvre Les Nancy
• Region: Grand Est › Lorraine › Meurthe-et-Moselle
• Activity type: Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
• Administrative Contact: Jean-Paul Fevre (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

SoluCel Oy

Participation ended

Finland

• EU contribution: € 70 981,00
• Address: Tietotie 2 ; 02150 Espoo
• Activity type: Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
• Administrative Contact: Jan Pen (Dr.)
• Total cost: No data

Philip Morris Products S.A.

Switzerland

• EU contribution: No data
• Address: Quai Jeanrenaud 56 ; 2000 Neuchatel
• Region: Schweiz/Suisse/Svizzera › Espace Mittelland › Neuchâtel
• Activity type: Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
• Administrative Contact: Markus Klein (Dr.)
• Total cost: No data

Dow AgroSciences LLC

Participation ended

United States

• EU contribution: No data
• Address: Zionsville Road 9330 ; 46268-1054 INDIANAPOLIS
• Activity type: Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
• Administrative Contact: Ronald Maciak (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data

INSTITUT DE RECHERCHE PIERRE FABRE

France

• EU contribution: No data
• Address: PLACE ABEL GANCE 45 ; 92100 Boulogne Billancourt
• Region: Ile-de-France › Ile-de-France › Hauts-de-Seine
• Activity type: Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
• Administrative Contact: Yves Barbin (Mr.)
• Total cost: No data