Study offers insight into delicate biochemical balance required for plant growth
(PhysOrg.com) -- In an ongoing effort to understand how modifying plant cell walls might affect the production of biomass and its breakdown for use in biofuels, scientists at the Brookhaven National...
View ArticleMaking nature's best better to produce biofuels
If a tree falls in the forest and there are no enzymes to digest it, does it break down?
View ArticleChemists study mutated plants that may be better for biofuels
Genetic mutations to cellulose in plants could improve the conversion of cellulosic biomass into biofuels, according to a research team that included two Iowa State University chemists.
View ArticleAdelaide joins with Italy to develop 'super spaghetti'
University of Adelaide researchers are working with colleagues in Italy to produce better quality pasta that also adds greater value to human health.
View ArticleResearch into bacterial disease could lead to natural herbicide
(Phys.org)—University of Florida scientists are researching a natural herbicide that could be used in traditional and organic farming.
View ArticleA better route to xylan: Researchers find new access to abundant biomass for...
(Phys.org)—After cellulose, xylan is the most abundant biomass material on Earth, and therefore represents an enormous potential source of stored solar energy for the production of advance biofuels. A...
View ArticleStudy offers insight into converting wood to bio-oil
(Phys.org)—New research from North Carolina State University provides molecular-level insights into how cellulose – the most common organic compound on Earth and the main structural component of plant...
View ArticleDiscovery may pave way to genetically enhanced biofuel crops
Best known for its ability to transform simmering pots of sugared fruit into marmalades and jams, pectin is a major constituent of plant cell walls and the middle lamella, the sticky layer that glues...
View ArticleNewly discovered plant structure may lead to improved biofuel processing
When Li Tan approached his colleagues at the University of Georgia with some unusual data he had collected, they initially seemed convinced that his experiment had become contaminated; what he was...
View ArticleEco-safe antibacterial fibre discovered
(Phys.org)—Researchers at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm have discovered an antibacterial polymer that can be used in everyday products such as sportswear, diapers and bandages, without...
View ArticlePining for a beetle genome
The sequencing and assembly of the genome of the mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae, is published online this week in Genome Biology. The species is native to North America, where it is...
View ArticleMaking do with more: Team engineers plant cell walls to boost sugar yields...
(Phys.org) —When blessed with a resource in overwhelming abundance it's generally a good idea to make valuable use of that resource. Lignocellulosic biomass is the most abundant organic material on...
View ArticlePlant protein shape puzzle solved by molecular 3-D model
(Phys.org) —Researchers from North Carolina State University believe they have solved a puzzle that has vexed science since plants first appeared on Earth.
View ArticleTeam creates potential food source from non-food plants
A team of Virginia Tech researchers has succeeded in transforming cellulose into starch, a process that has the potential to provide a previously untapped nutrient source from plants not traditionally...
View ArticleResearchers find without microtubule guidance, cellulose causes changes in...
(Phys.org) —Mathematics is everywhere in nature, and this is illustrated by the spiral patterns in plants such as pine cones, sunflowers or the arrangement of leaves around a stem. Most plants produce...
View ArticleChanging cellulose-forming process may tap plants' biofuel potential
(Phys.org) —Changing the way a plant forms cellulose may lead to more efficient, less expensive biofuel production, according to Penn State engineers.
View ArticleUltrasound 'making waves' for enhancing biofuel production
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...
View ArticleLess is more: Novel cellulose structure requires fewer enzymes to process...
(Phys.org) —Improved methods for breaking down cellulose nanofibers are central to cost-effective biofuel production and the subject of new research from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and the...
View ArticleStudy uses neutron scattering, supercomputing to demystify forces at play in...
Researchers studying more effective ways to convert woody plant matter into biofuels at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have identified fundamental forces that change plant...
View ArticleEnlisting cells' protein recycling machinery to regulate plant products
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have identified a new way to regulate the production of phenols, a class of plant products with a wide range of applications...
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