Grainstock guardians

THE integrity of Western Australia’s grainstock is being preserved thanks to the efforts of a relatively new, but thriving company, Saturn Biotech.

Originally focused on using a new technique for identifying wheat varieties, Saturn Biotech’s capabilities have broadened over two years to include the identification of many other crops and the diagnosis of a range of diseases that affect major agricultural production.

“We are now able to identify the majority of the commonly commercial cereal crops in Australia, and hope to expand this to include all high protein crops,” said Director Mark Pitts.

“This identification tool can be used by breeders to track their produce, increase the level of quality control and to assist in the development of desirable traits in the grain. “

The disease diagnosis aspects of the business are continuing to increase as well.

“Two diseases being tackled by Saturn Biotech at present are anthracnose and cucumber mosaic virus (CMV). “

We offer a ‘world’s best’ test for anthracnose, a fungal disease which wiped out WA’s 80,000 hectare albus lupin industry and can decimate yields of other species given suitable conditions. We also test for cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), which can slice up to 20 per cent from angustifolius lupin yields.

“The tests are so sensitive that we can detect one CMV infected seed from a sample of 1,000 and one anthracnose infected seed from a sample of 10,000. This is enabling farmers in WA and SA to safely export their produce.

“We are also working with sheep breeders and the WA Fisheries to develop services such as screening for genetic predispositions and viral screening for imported prawn meal.”

Saturn has access to over $7 million in equipment at the State Agricultural Biotechnology Centre at Murdoch University, however one of the secrets behind their success is the use of a Malditof mass spectrometer, providing a faster and more accurate result than alternative technologies in Australia.

“As we are a small and relatively new company, we would not have been able to access this cutting edge technology without our partnership with the SABC and Murdoch University.”

The partnership with the SABC and Murdoch is reaping rewards for all parties.

Through the commercial partnership with Saturn Biotech, the team was able to secure Centre of Excellence funding for the Centre for High Throughput Agricultural Genetic Analysis (CHAGA), which began operations last year.

“We are very excited about its partnership with CHAGA and the potential for outcomes which can be practically applied for agri-industry,” said Mr Pitts.

“WA has a real opportunity to develop as a world leader in “WA has a real opportunity to develop as a world leader in agricultural biotechnology and as a centre in our region.”

Saturn Biotech plans to spend their next phase consolidating Saturn Biotech plans to spend their next phase consolidating their revenue streams and expanding their market base.