Stay up to date with the latest news about 5Metis and other important information from the industry you should know.
February 7, 2024
Clue Genetics and 5Metis Enter Collaboration
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina – February 7, 2024
Clue Genetics Inc. (Clue) and 5Metis, Inc. (5Metis) today announced that they have entered into a license and collaboration agreement focused on the discovery and development of novel biologically derived products for the crop protection sector.
The agreement was executed following a period of successful exploratory work during which the companies identified and confirmed the activity of a variety of strains from Clue’s proprietary fungal library, which showed potent control against a panel of important fungal pathogens. The companies will now advance these strains, and the compounds they make, towards commercial development, including through further glasshouse and/or field trials against agronomically important pathogens.
Under the Agreement, 5Metis receives the right to commercialize products derived from the Clue strains on a global basis. Oliver Ratcliffe, Chairman of Clue, noted, “We are delighted to be working with 5Metis, as it has a very experienced team led by seasoned individuals who have a successful track record in the agritech industry. We are confident that 5Metis will be an excellent partner in developing new products based on Clue’s proprietary fungal library.” Brian Green, COO & CSO of 5Metis added, “We are pleased to have access to Clue’s collection of living fungi. This is a unique biological resource, with diverse strains collected from a wide range of environments, that offers enormous potential for the discovery of novel bio molecules that will control pests. Our initial work has identified some high potential candidates for new products that can control a spectrum of crop pathogens that currently cause devastating crop losses to farmers. We very much look forward to building a strong partnership with Clue.”
About Clue Genetics: Clue Genetics is a leader in fungal genomics and owns a large diverse proprietary collection of microbial strains. The firm is deploying metabologenomic and synthetic biology approaches to develop fungi-derived molecules towards a broad range of applications, including new treatments for disease, tackling pollution and more sustainable inputs for agriculture. Contact: Dr. Oliver J. Ratcliffe, contact@cluegen.com
About 5Metis: 5Metis is a pure-play discovery agrichemical company headquartered in Research Triangle Park, NC. The company leverages exclusive expertise in boron‐based small molecule discovery and natural product synthetic biology. 5Metis is paving the way to deliver new molecules with novel modes of action that are not currently found in the agrichemical space. Contact: Dr. Brian Green, communication@5metis.com
April 20, 2023
5Metis Is Expanding!
5Metis, Inc. is happy to announce the newest addition to our research team. Steven (Stevie) Williams has joined our chemistry group as a Research Associate and will be working closely with our Senior Formulation and Analytical Chemists in their efforts to support biology testing of our new crop protection molecules.
Stevie received his MS in Chemistry from UNC Wilmington after obtaining BS degrees in Chemistry from Winston Salem State University and Exercise Science at Brevard College. He has most recently been working as a Quality Control Chemist for Alberdingk Boley in Greensboro, NC.
We are excited to have Stevie join our full-time research team in Research Triangle Park, NC.
October 19, 2022
5Metis Is Hiring!
5Metis, a pure play agrichemical company working at the cooperative interface of chemistry and biology, is seeking an experienced people-leader chemist with an excellent background in discovery/medicinal chemistry to manage and oversee the 5Metis formulation and analytical chemistry labs and personnel. This includes setting priorities for the labs, employee management, hiring, career development, and oversight of laboratory budgets for equipment, contracts, general lab requirements, and travel. In addition, the successful candidate will support outsourced discovery chemistry efforts, as well as growing the cohesive partnership between chemistry and biology. This position reports directly to the Senior Director of Chemistry.
August 17, 2022
5Metis Is Expanding!
5Metis Inc. is pleased to announce that three new employees have joined our team as we continue to build our platform for delivering resistance-breaking new modes of action molecules to the agrichemical industry.
Our new teammates are:
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Yuba Kandel (Research Scientist, Plant Pathology), who earned his Ph.D. from South Dakota State University, joined 5Metis from Iowa State University, where he spent more than 10 years conducting research on plant diseases. Yuba has designed and implemented fungicide efficacy trials from the lab to the greenhouse to the field.
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Ola Noras (Research Associate, Chemistry) came to 5Metis after completing her Fulbright Fellowship in Poland. Prior to that, Ola had earned a M.S. from The University of Tennessee and worked at Greenlight Biosciences on the fungal research team.
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Xunhai Zheng (Senior Analytical Chemist) joins 5Metis from BASF with additional experience at Bayer and the NIH. Trained as an organic chemist, Xunhai is also an experienced bioanalytical chemist, with experience developing assays to monitor fate of compounds in and on leaf tissues. He also has considerable experience with NMR.
Steve Tuttle, President and CEO, said, “Our experienced R&D team is making significant progress converting the unique properties of boron into much needed and valuable crop protection compounds, and we are excited to have Yuba, Ola, and Xunhai bring their skills to our team efforts.”
April 26, 2022
Research Triangle Park, NC
5Metis, Inc., a recently formed pure-play discovery company specializing in crop health, is expanding its research in the area of crop protection with the intention of supporting smallholder farming communities in the developing world. These communities, often underserved by commercial agriculture, are disproportionately affected by damaging pathogens and unfavorable climate conditions that negatively impact crop production outcomes, often leading to significant crop loss. Through its research, 5Metis aims to tackle crop loss by improving pathogen-control methodologies for greater plant health and more profitable production outcomes.
Founded in 2021, 5Metis raised $10 million from private investors in a Series A Preferred Stock financing round lead by Ospraie Ag Science. “Our company is strategically focused on improving crop protection solutions by offering new modes of action that leverage molecular evolution and innovative science,” said Steven Tuttle, President and CEO of 5Metis. “Directing a portion of our research toward a particular geography allows us to not only investigate pathogens that have an adverse impact on a specific population but also to provide much needed support to smallholder farmers historically underserved by the crop protection industry.”
5Metis’s approach to research unites proprietary technology with scientific chemistry to deliver naturally-derived solutions that can ultimately provide effective control against harmful pathogens. Now, thanks to a multi-year grant awarded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 5Metis can elevate research initiatives by expanding its team as well as its laboratory and greenhouse footprint in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. The award from the foundation will augment 5Metis’s goal to develop effective, low-cost novel fungicides with low toxicity and a broad antifungal spectrum.
“Expanding our research program will expedite discoveries in new modes of action to provide control in a safe and sustainable manner,” said Brian Green, Chief Scientific Officer for 5Metis. “The need fueling this research is great. When left uncontrolled, the pathogens we are targeting can devastate those depending on crop production for economic security.”
March 21, 2022
5Metis Is Expanding!
5Metis, Inc. is pleased to announce that three new employees have joined our team as we work to deliver novel solutions to the global agricultural chemistry industry. In addition, we have an active job posting for a Research Associate in Chemistry (click here for more information) and expect to have more job postings going live in the coming months.
Our new teammates are:
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Shengyou Long is our new Lead Formulation Chemist. Shengyou comes to us with a great amount of experience in agricultural formulations and was formerly a formulation chemist for Adama. He also brings process chemistry experience to the team.
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Katie Clements has joined us as a Research Associate – Biology. Katie completed her MS from UNC Wilmington in the microbial sciences and then gained significant experience working as a Research Assistant for the university.
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Cody Averette, who comes to us with experience from the Bayer CropScience and Syngenta greenhouses, is our new Greenhouse Technician.
Steve Tuttle, President and CEO, said, “We are excited to have such high quality individuals coming on board to help us convert the unique properties of boron into much needed and valuable crop protection compounds.”
October 6, 2021
Crop Science Company 5Metis Announced as Fifth 2021 F3 Tech Accelerator Participant
F3 Tech, an agriculture innovation accelerator program for early-stage companies supported by the nonprofit Eastern Shore Entrepreneurship Center and the U.S. Economic Development Administration, today announced 5Metis as the fifth company in this year’s program. 5Metis is a new pure-play discovery company for crop health.
October 4, 2021
5Metis Raises $10M for R&D of Novel Crop Protection and Plant Health Technologies
5Metis, a newly formed company, has raised $10 million from eight investors in an oversubscribed Series A Preferred Stock financing round, company president CEO Steve Tuttle said in an exclusive interview with WRAL TechWire.
