North Carolina research breaking down cell walls

In North Carolina, researchers are using biotechnology to chip away at barriers to producing biofuels from woody plants and grasses instead of the corn and sugarcane used to make ethanol. NC State’s Forest Biotechnology Group, which has been responsible for several research milestones published this year, summed up biofuel research progress and challenges for a special issue of the Plant Biotechnology Journal.

Scientists have found ways to modify the cell wall structure to reduce the amount of lignin and change its makeup. They’ve manipulated the steps in hemicellulose formation and disrupted links between lignin and celluloses. To speed up biofuel production, they’ve introduced cell wall-degrading enzymes into plants, such as a bacterial gene that won’t affect plants until it’s activated at high temperatures during biofuel production. NC State’s team has created genetically modified trees with reduced lignin content – no small feat.