Technology
A plant’s DNA is like firmware: the basic plans for building plants.
Epigenetics is the control software for when and how those plans are used. Epigenetics acts through biochemical patterns that regulate genes without modifying the DNA sequence itself.
Plants can use epigenetics as a type of memory to adapt to new environments and then imprint that adaptation in their offspring — for example, if this season is dry, the plant’s descendants are adapted for drought themselves.
Until now, plant epigenetics data has been sparse and difficult to obtain, and few scalable tools existed to engineer plant epigenetics. Using advanced sequencing technology and AI methods, Decibel has introduced the ability to read epigenetic patterns, understand their interaction with traits, and write epigenetic instructions, opening up a new level of control over crop traits.
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We have created a pipeline for assembling foundational models based on both epigenetic and genetic data.
Our pipeline uses powerful machine learning methods to sift through hundreds of millions of epigenetic marks across plant genomes and find the patterns that control specific traits, revealing the hidden landscape of epigenetics. Breeders can use these models to make more accurate decisions, accelerating the development of new crop varieties.
Reading crop epigenetic controls is revolutionary. Changing epigenetic controls – writing out new instructions – can open a new era in agriculture. Decibel’s platform enables both.
Write
Decibel’s spray-on and seed treatment technologies write epigenetic states in ways similar to how plants naturally control epigenetics.
Plants and other organisms make small strings of DNA and RNA to control the machinery which maintains their epigenetics. These short sequences are addresses which direct chemical modification (methylation) to specific stretches in the plant’s genome. In a similar way, Decibel’s epigenetics technology provides new instructions for this epigenetic machinery, guiding new epigenetic change and maintenance to produce the traits we need.