Upstream Biotechnology, Inc., a North Carolina plant biotechnology company developing stress-inducible gene-regulation technologies for crop protection and resilience, today announced the closing of its seed financing. The round was led by LeVert Ventures, with participation from Corteva, through its Corteva Catalyst™ investment platform, Silver Blue, Middleland Capital’s VTC Ventures, and other investors.

Upstream will use the proceeds to advance its proprietary SwitchBlade platform, expand validation across key row and specialty crops, strengthen intellectual property, and support strategic collaborations with leading seed industry partners.

SwitchBlade is designed to address one of the central tradeoffs in crop biotechnology: improving disease resistance without imposing the yield penalties often associated with constitutive defense activation. The platform regulates trait activation at the level of protein translation, enabling plants to activate resistance traits in response to disease or stress while maintaining normal growth under non-stress conditions.

“Upstream is developing a differentiated platform that could become an enabling technology for disease resistance and crop resilience across multiple crops,” said Karen LeVert, Managing Partner of LeVert Ventures. “The company’s science is rooted in world-class plant immunity research, and its partnership-driven model aligns well with how major seed companies evaluate and deploy new trait technologies. We are excited to lead this financing and support Upstream as it advances toward broader commercial validation.”

Founded on pioneering plant immunity research from Duke University, Upstream is part of North Carolina’s growing agricultural biotechnology ecosystem. The company’s scientific foundation includes decades of work in systemic acquired resistance, NPR1 biology, and inducible plant defense regulation.

“Closing this seed financing is an important milestone for Upstream,” said George H. Greene, PhD, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Upstream Biotechnology. “This capital allows us to accelerate development of SwitchBlade, deepen our work with strategic partners, and build a platform company focused on helping farmers protect yield under increasing disease and environmental pressure.”

Upstream has demonstrated proof of concept for SwitchBlade in multiple crop systems and is advancing programs in soybean, corn, rice, and additional crops where inducible regulation may improve trait performance while reducing unwanted fitness costs.

About Upstream Biotechnology, Inc.

Upstream Biotechnology is an agricultural biotechnology company developing programmable translational control technologies that enable precise activation of genetic traits in response to biological and environmental signals. Founded on pioneering research in plant immunity out of Professor Xinnian Dong’s Lab at Duke University, Upstream’s proprietary SwitchBlade platform is designed to improve disease resistance, trait performance, and crop resilience while reducing limitations associated with conventional gene expression systems. The company is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina. For more information, visit www.upstreambiotech.com.

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