Recombinant anchor peptides are of great interest for the development of new crop protection and plant enhancement products for resource-efficient and sustainable agriculture, as they are more durable and bind exclusively to the crop to be protected. The increase in efficiency made possible by this enormous level of precision can only be estimated, but it is ten times greater than the methods commonly used today. 

The rational design of customised peptide anchors and meeting application requirements requires a detailed definition of the application requirements from the user’s perspective, an understanding of the structure of the surface-bound anchor peptide, its binding mechanism and its effect on the plant. The BionFarming development team identifies user needs and requirements at an early stage of research and development in order to illuminate and shape the various aspects of biotechnological development. An agro-ecological perspective is ensured through collaboration with the Humboldt University of Berlin. 

Molecular dynamics simulation, protein and feature engineering are important services of BionFarming to achieve an optimised structural characterisation of the peptide and its likely binding mechanisms and to reduce the development risk. Thanks to the plant-based expression system, the appropriate test beds for further development and optimisation can be achieved quickly and cost-effectively, so that there are no long waiting times between tests and first applications in the research greenhouse. Based on the identified areas of application and the knowledge gained on anchor peptide formation, the data could be gathered to enable a project to be initiated on behalf of a customer.