Concours Sival Innovation : BG Conception présente Skiterre

Nurspray® is a registered biostimulant designed to activate plants’ natural mechanisms of tolerance to water stress. The product is based on a new signal molecule discovered and developed by the startup Fyteko.

Sumi Agro has been working with Fyteko since 2018 to validate and refine its use in the field. The product is now in the initial marketing phase in France.

The active molecule in Nurspray® is derived from hydroxycinnamic acids naturally present in plant cell walls. It is obtained through a unique green chemistry process.

A whole series of genes whose expression is regulated by the application of Nurspray® was identified and grouped into 3 functional categories: genes linked with the management of water stress, with osmotic stress, and with the transmission of information. Following this analysis, research work focused on the metabolic pathway of proline, an amino acid that plays a major role in osmoprotection, and it was demonstrated that Nurspray® can modulate proline production.

Foliar application of the product induces an overproduction of proline, because the signal molecule sends the plant the message that it is in a state of stress. In the absence of real stress, this proline is recycled by the plant and, when stress occurs, the plant will naturally start to overproduce proline more rapidly and intensively.

Thanks to Nurspray®, the plant remembers this means of defence and can trigger it in the event of stress, which it then withstands more effectively.

The effects of Nurspray® on crops mean a better use of available water, greater resilience to water stress and better post-stress recovery.

The benefits have been demonstrated with a large number of crops.

The use of bioactive molecules that trigger the epigenetic memory of crops represents a new approach in agriculture.