Monsanto and Nimbus Discovery will collaborate to develop broad-spectrum fungicides with new modes of action to help farmers control plant diseases. Fungal infections, which appear as rusts, leaf spots, and blights on a range of important food crops, are estimated to result in significant global crop losses each year.

Cambridge, Massachusetts-based startup Nimbus applies its computational platform to discover novel approaches to developing drugs for previously inaccessible disease targets. Under the terms of their agreement, the partners will create a jointly-owned entity that will have access to Nimbus’ platform and research tools that together, with Monsanto’s agricultural testing capabilities, will co-develop agricultural fungicides. Monsanto will have access to applications within agriculture and Nimbus will retain rights for all other applications. Financial terms were not disclosed.

The deal arises out of Monsanto’s on-going strategic alliance with Atlas Venture, the founder of Nimbus Discovery, to explore co-investment opportunities in early-stage life sciences technology companies.

“Part of our commitment to bringing new technologies to agriculture is identifying innovators we can work with to deliver solutions for our farmer customers,” said Steve Padgette, Monsanto R&D investment strategy lead. “Nimbus is breaking new ground with promising and novel work that has strong potential to be applied in agriculture.”

Nimbus uses proprietary computational technologies for rational small molecule drug design. Its preclinical pipeline includes novel agents for the treatment of cancer, metabolic disease and inflammation. The company is organized as a constellation of small, nimble teams of experienced drug-hunters deployed across program-focused subsidiary companies. Each team has freedom to operate and enter into program asset deals with leading pharmaceutical companies.

It’s not the first pact Monsanto has signed with a therapeutics-focused company. In 2012, Monsanto partnered separately with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Marina Biotech to apply RNA interference technologies to the development of biopesticides.