Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA
August 29, 2011
Syngenta Biotechnology, Inc., founder Mary-Dell Chilton was honored by the Triangle Business Journal as one of its 2011 “Women in Business” award winners.
At a luncheon ceremony in Research Triangle Park, Dr. Chilton was recognized as part of the Journal’s program to honor Triangle women who have proven to be dynamic and outstanding leaders with established track records of significant accomplishments in business and community service.
Dr. Chilton founded Syngenta’s biotechnology research and development headquarters in Research Triangle Park in 1984. Since that time, the company has expanded its facilities and employment in the park, which now include greenhouses, laboratories and administrative offices. The company recently announced it will build a new 147,000 square foot research and development complex to provide Syngenta researchers the environment to pursue new traits that will help farmers grow more from less.
Her discovery of the process that allows genes to be inserted into plants is widely credited as the technological breakthrough that allowed the development of the agricultural biotechnology industry.
Utilizing the agrobacterium transformation method developed by Dr. Chilton and her colleagues, scientists have been able to improve crop yields by enhancing the ability of plants to combat stresses such as drought and insect pressures.
Syngenta Biotechnology, Inc. is a leading innovator and collaborator in plant genetics and serves as the global headquarters for plant biotechnology research and development for Syngenta. The company employs approximately 400 people at its RTP campus. The company was ranked in 2010 as the No. 7 science employer in the world by Science magazine.
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