Researchers at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture have received $2.5 million in federal funding to develop corn varieties that use nitrogen more efficiently, a project aimed at reducing reliance on synthetic nitrogen fertilizers and lowering agricultural emissions.
Scott Lenaghan, associate professor of food science, and Neal Stewart, professor of plant sciences, secured funding through the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy. Their project, titled "SyN-Fix: Synthetic Biology to Improve Nitrogen Cycling in the Maize Rhizosphere," was one of nine selected under the agency's Technologies to Emend and Obviate SYnthetic Nitrogen's Toll on Emissions, or TEOSYNTE, program.
The TEOSYNTE initiative supports the development of technologies that reduce synthetic nitrogen fertilizer use in corn and sorghum production, two major feedstocks for U.S. ethanol manufacturing. The program focuses on crop breeding, genetic engineering and microbial technologies designed to lower agriculture-related nitrous oxide emissions while reducing production costs for farmers.
According to ARPA-E, TEOSYNTE projects could prevent up to 78 million metric tons of emissions associated with nitrogen fertilizer production and save U.S. farmers as much as $6.4 billion in operating costs. The United States produces about 350 million metric tons of corn annually, making it the world's largest corn producer.
Lenaghan and Stewart serve as directors of the UT Center for Agricultural Synthetic Biology, which they co-founded in 2018. Their research will focus on developing corn cultivars whose roots produce compounds that improve nitrogen cycling in the soil and optimize root growth patterns.
The researchers aim to reduce nitrous oxide emissions from agricultural soils while increasing the plant's ability to absorb nitrogen already present in the soil. The project is designed to achieve those benefits without negatively affecting crop yields.
Nitrogen-based fertilizers are a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, and their production relies heavily on petroleum-based inputs. Researchers said improving nitrogen-use efficiency could help reduce both environmental impacts and farmers' exposure to fertilizer price volatility.
The project seeks to provide growers with tools to make more effective use of nitrogen resources while maintaining productivity and supporting long-term agricultural sustainability.
Source: University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, "UTIA Researchers Win Grant to Improve Nitrogen Uptake in Corn Plants"