UofI Urbana-Champaign researchers develop yeast-based bioprocess for acetate and xylose feedstocks

In Illinois, a team of scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign developed a bioprocess using engineered yeast that completely and efficiently converted plant matter consisting of acetate and xylose into high-value bioproducts.

In a paper published in Nature Communications, the team described its work, which offers a viable method for overcoming one of the major hurdles impeding the commercialization of lignocellulosic biofuels — the toxicity of acetate to fermenting microbes such as yeast.

Their methodology fully utilized the xylose and acetate from the cell walls of switchgrass, transforming the acetate from an unwanted byproduct into a valuable substrate that boosted the yeast’s efficiency at converting the sugars in the hydrosolates.