Syngenta and Metabolon Inc. in Collaborative Research Agreement for Biochemical Profiling ...( WASHINGTON Sept. 30 /- Syngenta a...)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Syngenta announced a multi-year agreement with Metabolon for biochemical profiling technology that will enhance the Syngenta technical toolkit for its seeds research programs. This agreement will support Syngenta researchers' understanding of plants' response to environmental conditions and decisions on crop traits earlier in the development cycle.

"Biochemical profiling is becoming an important part of Syngenta's focused program to apply the full range of cutting-edge science to supply solutions for growers," said Roger Kemble, Ph.D., Head, Syngenta Crop Genetics Research. "Metabolon's technology will enable Syngenta's insights to the performance of our products as we focus in bringing the next generations of seed science across native traits and GM paths to unlock crop productivity."

"We are excited to expand our partnership with Syngenta, a leading seed biotechnology company," said John Ryals, Ph.D., president and chief executive of Metabolon. "This agreement brings Syngenta into our growing stable of commercial partners in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and consumer product sectors and we look forward to providing further actionable insight with our global biochemical analysis."

This agreement expands upon initial studies performed by Metabolon for Syngenta to test the application of the technology. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Syngenta is a world-leading agribusiness committed to sustainable agriculture through innovative research and technology. The company is a leader in crop protection, and ranks third in the high-value commercial seeds market. Sales in 2007 were approximately $9.2 billion. Syngenta employs over 21,000 people in more than 90 countries. Syngenta is listed on the Swiss stock exchange (SYNN) and in New York (SYT). Further information is available at http://www.syngenta.com.

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