45 Sidney Street
Cambridge, MA 02139
Phone: 617-551-8297
www.cereon.com

David Fischhoff and Mark Trusheim , co-presidents
Privately Held

Overview

Cereon Genomics’s goal is to help meet the world’s needs to double crop yields over the next 20 years, through the company’s work with plant genomes and the discovery of those genes’ functions. Cereon also seeks to improve the crops’ nutritional quality for developed and developing countries.

Cereon Genomics was created in November 1997 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Monsanto Co.

Cereon Genomics’ strategic goal is to identify genes that will improve crops by increasing yield, improving crop tolerance to pests and conditions such as drought, and enhancing the nutritional value of food and feed. Cereon researchers have sequenced the genome of Arabidopsis.

Partners

Cereon operates a collaborative partnership with Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. This multiyear alliance provides mechanisms for exchanging technologies between Millennium and Cereon for use in agriculture. Cereon commercializes its discoveries through Monsanto and Monsanto’s network of partners.

Cereon Genomics LLC and a research team at the University of Richmond in Virginia released the genome sequence for Agrobacterium tumefaciens, a bacterium that can naturally transfer DNA to plant cells. The availability of this genome sequence can help to improve the process of producing new crop varieties through biotechnology.