Ceres Releases Soybean Sequences to Soybean Industry Initiative

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – March 3, 2004 – Ceres has agreed to release approximately fifteen thousand full length soybean cDNA sequences and over ninety-five thousand ESTs to a newly established soybean industry initiative, QUALISOY. The release of these sequences is intended to provide a major boost for the soybean-focused compositional improvement initiative. These sequences are expected to help better understand the genetic makeup of soybean - a critical step in creating an improved crop. In the years ahead, this information could lead to soybeans with better nutritional value, greater yields, as well as crops with enhanced oil, protein and phytonutrient characteristics.

The QUALISOY Board is an industry coalition focused on compositional improvements in U.S. soybeans. The initiative will serve as an innovative platform for increasing U.S. soybean competitiveness through development, commercialization and promotion of enhanced quality traits.

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