The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center: A St. Louis based non-profit committed to Improving the Human Condition through Plant Science.
St. Louis, MO
Based in United States
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Big news for St. Louis agtech! Danforth Center startup @Spearhead_Bio has closed an oversubscribed $1.62M seed round to advance crop-engineering technology designed to save years and millions of dollars in developing improved crops.
Learn more: danforthcenter.org/news/spea…
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Rice, wheat, maize, sorghum, and barley share an ancient genetic history. A new study co-authored by Danforth Center Member Emerita Toby Kellogg reveals how the grass family began, and offers knowledge that could help advance food security.
Read more: danforthcenter.org/news/ance…
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The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and @LancasterUni just landed a $4.9M grant from the @gatesfoundation to help cassava (a crop that feeds roughly 800 million people) hold up under extreme heat. The four-year project is called HeatSmart Cassava.
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A new review co-authored by Boominathan Mohanasundaram and our Sona Pandey, PhD, looks at how rising CO2 and heat could affect how stable these ecosystems stay, and whether they keep storing carbon or start releasing it. Read more: danforthcenter.org/news/moss…
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One of the smallest plants on Earth is doing some of the biggest work for the planet's carbon cycle: peatlands built by moss store nearly a third of the world's soil carbon, more than 2x what's held in all the world's forest biomass combined.
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A single 2020 storm decimated 850,000 acres of corn in Iowa. Danforth Center PI Erin Sparks is tackling that problem underground: engineering corn with more flexible roots to resist wind damage.
Featured in @Forbes: danforthcenter.org/news/erin…
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Can a plant remember a heat wave?
Danforth Center principal investigator Ru Zhang is studying how photosynthetic cells retain "heat stress memory" to help breed more heat-resilient crops. 🌿
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We were honored to welcome @USDA Under Secretary Scott Hutchins (@USDAScience) to the Danforth Center this week. Thank you, Under Secretary Hutchins, for your time and for your commitment to supporting American agricultural innovation.
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Nebraska farmers are weighing a shift away from corn — and sorghum may be one of the smartest alternatives. Danforth Center scientist Andrea Eveland explains why this drought- and heat-resilient crop requires fewer inputs and is built for what's ahead.
ALT Researcher Andrea Eveland wears a straw hat as she examines a sorghum panicle in a sun-lit field, with rows of tall sorghum crops stretching into the background.
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Read the release here: danforthcenter.org/news/shor…
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New research! Danforth Center PI Erin Sparks & @Bayer4Crops used the SMURF device to show that shorter corn plants have more flexible roots — helping them take wind damage at less than half the rate of conventional corn. Watch the SMURF in action 👇
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Sabita Gyawali is our May Committee for Scientific Training and Mentoring Member of the Month! She studies plant-microbe interactions in the Bravo Lab and aims to eventually grow into a lead independent research role working on sustainable agriculture.
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Dr. Ru Zhang is leading a DOE grant bringing together top research institutions to study sorghum photosynthesis, and the implications could shed light ☀️ on other crops, too—like maize, wheat, and rice:
danforthcenter.org/news/danf…
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Danforth Center scientists are co-authors on a landmark study published today in @Nature: the first comprehensive sorghum pangenome. Breeding better sorghum varieties has always been limited by an incomplete picture of its genetic diversity—until now.
danforthcenter.org/news/glob…
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🔥 @Spearhead_Bio has been named a startup to watch in 2026! Their breakthrough genome editing technology, developed through research at the Danforth Center, supports the development of resilient crops and more secure harvests:
danforthcenter.org/news/st-l…
@Slotkin_Lab @stlouisbiz
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Big shoutout to @NadiaShakoor featured in St. Louis Magazine’s Movers & Shapers! 👏From plant genetics to leading Agrela Ecosystems & building real-time crop sensing tech, Nadia is advancing sustainable agtech & food security. lnkd.in/g_5UHk2W
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Plants that turn purple to warn us about unwanted chemicals: Dmitri A. Nusinow, PhD, & Malia Gehan, PhD, led a team that enabled grasses—including corn—to act as biosensors & change color when they detect specific chemicals. Learn more: loom.ly/D1B_eYY
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Dr. Doug Allen’s team & other Danforth Center labs are working to raise crop yields & cut input costs. Their research aims to boost protein & oil in soybeans & help corn grow with less nitrogen—a win for growers, consumers, & the planet.
loom.ly/n8CXydo
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In 2019, three Danforth Center scientists pitched an idea to make crop improvement better. This year, that idea fully came to life in the form of a new spinout: Spearhead Bio. 🧬Our supporters made this possible.
Make a gift today: bit.ly/3WWUKjD
#AgInnovation #AgTech
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Thank you to everyone who donated to the Danforth Center yesterday on #GivingTuesday! 💚 Your support of our science is helping improve lives, right here in St. Louis and all around the world. Thank you again! #Gratitude
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