---
title: 'Agriculture Daily Summary: What Happened on October 15, 2026'
headline: Switch Bioworks and Bayer explore biological nitrogen fixation
description: A separate study tested an engineered bacterial strain in 30 plant species.
url: https://thebench.bio/news/agriculture/2026-10-15
topic: agriculture
date: '2026-10-15'
covers:
- '2026-10-15'
date_published: '2026-10-16T00:04:26Z'
date_modified: '2026-10-16T00:04:26Z'
tags:
- Agriculture
sources: 2
publisher: TheBench.Bio
---

# Agriculture Daily Summary: What Happened on October 15, 2026

**Switch Bioworks and Bayer explore biological nitrogen fixation**

A separate study tested an engineered bacterial strain in 30 plant species.

## Today in brief

Switch Bioworks and Bayer Crop Science will explore Switch’s genetic-switch technology, initially focusing on biological nitrogen fixation. [1] In a separate study, researchers tested Rhizobium rhizogenes strain AS109 in 30 plant species and found it enabled transient expression across multiple crop groups. [2]

## Also worth knowing

- In grow-room studies, Switch’s programmed microbes produced five times as much nitrogen as control strains that produced it continuously. Switch says its microbes activate nitrogen production after establishing on roots. [1]
- AS109 enabled transient expression in six of eight tested Fabaceae species, including faba bean, but not soybean or mung bean. Researchers also used the strain for functional assays in faba bean. [2]

## The day in numbers

- **5×**: Nitrogen produced by Switch’s programmed microbes versus continuously active control strains in grow-room studies. [1]
- **30**: Plant species tested with AS109 and comparator strains. [2]

## Sources

1. [Switch Bioworks Announces Collaboration with Bayer Crop Science to Advance Biological Nitrogen](<https://www.croplife.com/crop-inputs/fertilizer/deep-tech-pioneer-switch-bioworks-announces-collaboration-with-global-agriculture-leader-bayer-crop-science-to-advance-biological-nitrogen/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=deep-tech-pioneer-switch-bioworks-announces-collaboration-with-global-agriculture-leader-bayer-crop-science-to-advance-biological-nitrogen>), CropLife, 2026-10-15
2. [A broad-host-range \<i\>Rhizobium rhizogenes\</i\> strain enables transient expression across diverse crop species](<https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3004010>), PLOS Biology, 2026-10-15

---

TheBench.Bio wrote this from the reporting cited above, with a language model drafting and editing.

[1]: <https://www.croplife.com/crop-inputs/fertilizer/deep-tech-pioneer-switch-bioworks-announces-collaboration-with-global-agriculture-leader-bayer-crop-science-to-advance-biological-nitrogen/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=deep-tech-pioneer-switch-bioworks-announces-collaboration-with-global-agriculture-leader-bayer-crop-science-to-advance-biological-nitrogen>
[2]: <https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3004010>