In Kansas, researchers have identified a gene, Sr35, gives wheat plants resistance to one of the most deadly races of the wheat stem rust pathogen — called Ug99 — that was first discovered in Uganda in 1999. The discovery may help scientists develop new wheat varieties and strategies that protect the world’s food crops against […]
In Wisconsin, C5.6 Technologies of Middleton and the Wisconsin Institute for Sustainable Technology (WIST) at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point won a $224,967 National Science Foundation grant to continue work on developing bacteria that will ferment sugar into isoprene, a high-energy molecule that can be used to make jet and other fuels.
In New Mexico, researchers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center have determined that cellulose III has a less sticky surface, which means that a smaller quantity of enzymes get stuck to it non-productively. The GLBRC team had found that using one method of pretreatment to convert cellulose […]
In Iowa, all chefs know that “you have to break some eggs to make an omelet,” and that includes engineers at Iowa State University who are using high-frequency sound waves to break down plant materials in order to cook up a better batch of biofuel. Researchers have shown that “pretreating” a wide variety of feedstocks […]
In Massachusetts, an E. coli-based metabolic pathway that produces fatty acids easily converted into fuel is the subject of research being performed at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University. The process, which produces octanoate, produces the highest yields yet reported. The work was funded by the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research […]
In Washington, U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell today announced the award of nearly $2.5 million in grants to 10 small businesses and community groups for wood-to-energy projects that will help expand regional economies and create new jobs. The projects will use woody material removed from forests during projects such as wildfire prevention and beetle-killed […]
In Texas, researchers at Texas A&M have developed a new medium for the cultivation of beneficial microorganisms called lactobacilli. A better understanding of lactobacilli metabolism can help improve feed efficiency in animals and combat malnutrition in humans, according to the researchers. Other lactobacilli are used to manufacture fermented food products and to drive the bioconversion of […]
In Norway, researchers at the University of Bergen and Uni Research are exploring tunicates (ciona intestinalis), a common marine species that consumes microorganisms and can be converted into much-needed feed for salmon or a combustible biofuel for filling petrol tanks. And it can be cultivated in vast amounts: 200 kg per square meter of ocean […]
In Wisconsin, a researcher from the University of Wisconsin-Madison has discovered that the enzyme found in a fungus used by the South American leafcutter ant to digest leaves for it could be the next key to efficient second generation biofuels production. It’s the ants themselves who cultivate the fungus, and a team of researchers brought […]
In New Mexico, the Los Alamos National Laboratory has published a paper on the binding of enzymes to cellulose polymers, and how oftentimes, increased binding does not lead to faster breakdown into simple sugars. The team, led by Shishir Chundawat of the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, has been using biomass pretreatments to convert cellulose […]
