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by Chris Barncard (University of Wisconsin–Madison) An unprecedented comparison of hundreds of species of yeasts has helped geneticists brew up an expansive picture of their evolution over the last hundreds of millions of years, including an analysis of the way they evolved individual appetites for particular food sources that may be
Yeast
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Impossible Foods took the #1 spot in the 2018 “40 Hottest Technologies in the Advanced Bioeconomy” rankings, published today in The Digest, the world’s most widely-read bioeconomy daily. The announcement was made live at the Advanced Bioeconomy Leadership Conference (ABLC Global), which is meeting
November 9, 2018
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by Jill Sakai (University of Wisconsin-Madison) A compound that has scientists seeing red may hold the key to engineering yeasts that produce better biofuels. A red pigment called pulcherrimin, naturally produced by several strains of wild yeasts, is synthesized in part through the same biochemical pathway that researchers hope to use
October 15, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) All through this month, Digest subscribers have been voting on the 40 Hottest Transformative Technologies in the Advanced Bioeconomy. While the Hot 50 concentrates on organizations — this set of rankings could include a complete process, a component, subprocess, a metabolic pathway, a computational system, a
October 12, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In North Carolina, Novozymes launched its next yeast technology, Innova Lift, for the starch-based ethanol industry. The product follows the launch earlier this year of its ambitious yeast platform, Innova, and the first product, Drive. … Novozymes ain’t saying, but we speculate there’s another release coming
October 10, 2018
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Biofuel Collaboration: Mascoma and NextFerm Technologies Enter Partnership on Yeast-Based Innovation
by Elizabeth Green (Food Ingredients First) Mascoma LLC, a subsidiary of Canadian business Lallemand Inc., and NextFerm Technologies have signed a new commercial joint development agreement that will expand their collaboration into the biofuels category. NextFerm is an Israeli biotech start-up that is developing and producing high-end, science-based, fermentation-derived ingredients for the
September 24, 2018
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by Chris Barncard (University of Wisconsin-Madison) Some chemicals used to speed up the breakdown of plants for production of biofuels like ethanol are poison to the yeasts that turn the plant sugars into fuel. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and several Department of Energy laboratories have identified two changes to
August 13, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) When it comes to Blue Marble’s coordinates in the bioeconomy star-field, think advanced flavorings made from seemingly impossible materials. Most recently we reported that Missoula’s Masters of Metamorphosis this past summer released a highly sought after U.S. and E.U. Natural version of bacon dithiazine (bacon flavor ingredient)
August 6, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The pace of invention and change is just too strong, we’ve realized, to highlight annual or even quarterly or monthly rankings and summaries of significant product and service advances. For now, we’re going to be tracking these on a weekly basis to keep pace with the
July 10, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The pace of invention and change is just too strong, we’ve realized, to highlight annual or even quarterly or monthly rankings and summaries of significant product and service advances. For now, we’re going to be tracking these on a weekly basis to keep pace with the
June 22, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … Let’s review the big gambits from the likes of DSM, DuPont Industrial Biosciences and Novozymes as they duke it out over market share in an era where corn ethanol gallons are, perhaps for the first time, unlikely to rise much for a while. With that,
June 15, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … But it shows also what smaller companies can do when they partner effectively – whether that means industrial giants like ArcelorMittal or BASF, technology accelerator schemes like Unreasonable Impact, or with the US ethanol industry. And BASF, Lallemand, Leaf Resources and Syngenta’s Enogen corn are
June 14, 2018
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(Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits/BASF) BASF Enzymes LLC and Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits (LBDS) have formally entered into a marketing and sales collaboration agreement to leverage synergies between the two companies’ products that maximize value to customers in the ethanol market in the United States. As part of this collaboration, BASF will use
June 14, 2018
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by Tim Albrecht and Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Kristin Moore and Graeme Walker were recognized June 12 for their contributions to ethanol industry during the 2018 Fuel Ethanol Workshop and Expo in Omaha. Moore was presented with the High-Octane Award and Walker received the Award of Excellence. The High Octane
June 12, 2018
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Yeast performance dictates how plants operate and how successful they are. But with the relatively recent introduction of new yeast technologies, it can be difficult to know what works best in your plant and what will help you to meet your specific goals. That’s why on Tuesday, June 5 at 12
May 30, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) JBEI’s mission is to convert biomass to biofuels. The goal is to provide the nation with clean, renewable transportation fuels identical to gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Inside JBEI’s Emeryville laboratories, researchers are using the latest tools in molecular biology, chemical engineering, computational and robotic technologies,
(DSM/PR Newswire) Royal DSM, a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials received unanimous jury verdict in a Federal Court in Wisconsin concluding that all glycerol reducing ethanol yeast products sold by Lallemand infringe DSM’s US Patent 8,795,998. After several failed attempts between the parties to settle out of
May 17, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) From Southern California the report has arrived that Verdezyne is winding down as a company, and today is the last day of operations. The low oil price environment has claimed another victim among the renewable chemical pure-plays. Why oil prices have doomed more chemical players than
May 16, 2018
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(DSM/Newswire Today) Royal DSM announces its commitment to bring innovative solutions to the biofuels industry with a full portfolio offering of yeast and enzymes for starch, fiber and biomass conversions – DSM.com. Euronext: DSM KON — Royal DSM, a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials, announces its commitment to
March 30, 2018
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by Lonnie Shekhtman (Princeton University) … In a series of experiments, they used light to control genetically modified yeast and increase its output of commercially valuable chemicals. The results offer scientists a powerful new tool to probe and understand the inner working of cells. … Using their new technique, the Princeton researchers
March 30, 2018
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) We’ve been covering some important movements in the design and performance of yeast in recent weeks, including the arrival of Novozymes’ Innova drive strains. Most of the activity has been focused on 1G ethanol fermentation. But it’s been known for a long time that engineering a
The biggest news out of Novozymes this month is its new yeast platform for starch-based ethanol, while also introducing the first product, Innova Drive. A completely new yeast strain, the product can reduce fermentation time by up to two hours compared to current yeasts. 1G aside, Novozymes is heavily focused on
February 7, 2018
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by Dale Earls, Scientist (Novozymes/Biofuels Digest) In commercial yeasts available today, as fermentation progresses and the concentration of ethanol rises, yeast cells are increasingly exposed to levels of ethanol that quickly become toxic. This greatly affects yeast’s ability to produce ethanol; in fact, healthy, growing cells produce ethanol up to 33
December 30, 2017
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Industrially-Relevant Strains: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Biological Upgrading of Sugars
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The US Department of Energy has a goal of developing industrially-relevant strains to meet titer, rate, and yield targets for fuel precursors for the 2022 BC Platform cost target goals of $3/GGE. A project led by PI Gregg Beckham at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory focuses
December 29, 2017
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Verdezyne is a privately held industrial biotechnology company that is developing and commercializing novel genetically engineered microorganisms for use as “factories” to manufacture renewable chemicals. Verdezyne’s unique microorganisms permit greener, cleaner and more cost effective production of chemicals compared with traditional methods. The Company is commercializing
November 21, 2017
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) iMicrobes designs and builds microorganisms, including industrial strains of bacteria and yeast to produce chemicals from natural gas and carbon dioxide. Their green, bio-based methods are “more cost effective than sugar or oil, helping to make consumer goods cheaper” and the company picked up a joint
October 20, 2017
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by Lisa Gibson (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Advancements in yeast optimization are gaining momentum. New companies are entering the space and veterans are improving their processes. — Yeast strains used in the ethanol industry have remained largely static — even genetic engineering for favorable traits has taken hold widely just in
September 26, 2017
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The most visible advanced industrial fermentation target for a number of years has been cellulosic ethanol, but the targets are diversifying and cellulosics themselves are shifting gears from process to feedstocks. There’s a fervent ferment in fermentation these days. Today, we go through the Top
September 6, 2017
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(Xylogenics) Indiana-based Xylogenics announced today the release of a new strain design for its patented GX-1 yeast production and fermentation process. The efficiencies created by the newest strain design will have an immediate impact on industries that rely on micro-organism technologies, most notably the ethanol industry wherein individual production plants
June 29, 2017
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by Chris Barncard (University of Wisconsin-Madison) When Max Haase set out for a walk in Green Bay’s Baird Creek Nature Preserve on a May day in 2015, it was pretty normal stuff. Baird Creek was practically in his backyard, and it was a good day for a hike — sunny
June 23, 2017
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by Claudia Lutz (Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Illinois) New approach combines synthetic biology, genome editing tools, and automation to quickly and effectively produce novel yeast strains One of humankind’s oldest industrial partners is yeast, a familiar microbe that enabled early societies to brew beer and leaven bread and empowers modern
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Royal DSM is a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials. By connecting its unique competences in Life Sciences and Materials Sciences, DSM is driving economic prosperity, environmental progress and social advances to create sustainable value for all stakeholders. DSM delivers innovative solutions
May 9, 2017
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(CHASSY) … Yeast is already the powerhouse behind many food flavourings, the anti-aging compound Resveratrol, the malaria drug Artemisinin, the grapefruit extract Nootkatone, insulin, bioethanol, bioplastics, and there is potential for many more industrial applications. To better exploit the potential of yeast fermentations, microbiologists in ireland have joined forces with scientists
(AB Mauri) AB Mauri, a global leader in yeast and bakery ingredient products, has launched a new business division – AB Biotek – in North America and globally. Specializing in fermentation science and yeast innovation, AB Biotek is a technology-driven division that develops specialty yeast solutions and has capabilities across
April 7, 2017
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(MoveEnergy) AB Mauri, a global leader in yeast and bakery ingredient products (AB Mauri sells Fleischmann’s yeast), has launched a new business division—AB Biotek—in North America and globally. Specializing in fermentation science and yeast innovation, AB Biotek is a technology-driven division that develops specialty yeast solutions and has capabilities across
April 4, 2017
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(Taurus Energy) Quad County Corn Processors, Galva, Iowa, Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits and Taurus Energy has agreed to evaluate XyloFerm in the Cellerate™ process on industrial scale. After preliminary lab-scale trials of XyloFerm in the Cellerate™ process and obtained GRAS status for the XyloFerm yeast strain Quad County Corn
April 3, 2017
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(Bangkok Post) New yeast species is key to cutting cost — … After 18 months of research and experiments, the Thailand Institute of Science and Technological Research (TISTR) has found that they can use a species of yeast named Saccharomyces Cerevisiae in the cassava fermentation process, resulting in ethanol with a far
March 23, 2017
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(American Association for the Advancement of Science/EurekAlert!) In a package featuring seven new studies, scientists of the Synthetic Yeast Genome Project (Sc2.0) who previously constructed a single yeast chromosome now report constructing five more – representing more than one-third of yeast’s entire genome, in total. The results are major progress on
March 13, 2017
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by Anne Trafton (MIT News) MIT engineers have genetically reprogrammed a strain of yeast so that it converts sugars to fats much more efficiently, an advance that could make possible the renewable production of high-energy fuels such as diesel. The researchers, led by Gregory Stephanopoulos, the Willard Henry Dow Professor
February 15, 2017
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Recently, Ginkgo BioWorks announced the launch of their next generation foundry, Bioworks2. With 125,000 square feet and an 6X expected increase in capacity compatred to BioWorks 1, Bioworks2 represents a step change in what is possible for organism design. The company, which has raised a monstrous amount
January 23, 2017
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by Anne Trafton (MIT/Biomass Magazine) MIT engineers have genetically reprogrammed a strain of yeast so that it converts sugars to fats much more efficiently, an advance that could make possible the renewable production of high-energy fuels such as diesel. The researchers, led by Gregory Stephanopoulos, the Willard Henry Dow Professor
January 20, 2017
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by Doris de Guzman (Green Chemicals Blog) Leaf – Lesaffre Advanced Fermentations has inaugurated its the new Lesaffre Yeast Corporation drying facility in Headland, Alabama, last week, which is reportedly the company’s first yeast drying facility in the United States. The drying facility is located in Headland, Alabama where Lesaffre and
January 19, 2017
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(Bangkok Post) PTG Energy Plc (PTG), a SET-listed oil retailer, and Eiamburapa Co (EBP), a top producer of tapioca products, have teamed up to develop what they say will be the world’s first facility that makes ethanol from cassava pulp. The project has an investment budget of 1.5 billion baht. … Sapporo
January 13, 2017
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by Mark E. Griffin (University of Wisconsin-Madison) Scientists at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) have found a way to nearly double the efficiency with which a commonly used industrial yeast strain converts plant sugars to biofuel. The newly engineered “super yeast” could boost the
October 19, 2016
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) This season, The Digest is hosting the Strategic Intent webinar series, looking at the plans, progress and future milestones of strategic stakeholders in the Advanced Bioeconomy. In this slide deck, we looked at Fibria and Lallemand and their direct investments, partnerships and alliances with companies both heralded and
October 18, 2016
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) This season, The Digest is hosting the Strategic Intent webinar series, looking at the plans, progress and future milestones of strategic stakeholders in the Advanced Bioeconomy. In this slide deck, we looked at LeSaffre and Corbion and their direct investments, partnerships and alliances with companies
October 6, 2016
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(AUSBIOTECH/Ag Funder News) … Plant oils offer great potential to provide much-needed renewable replacements for petroleum-derived fuels and chemicals, due to their natural abundance. To harness this potential, plant oils must be engineered to ensure their structure is appropriate, and that they can be readily processed into liquid fuels (such as
September 9, 2016
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by Meghan Sapp (Biofuels Digest) In California, so far industry has only harnessed a fraction of the diversity available for biotechnological applications, including biofuel production. In the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a team led by DOE Joint Genome Institute researchers aims to help boost the use of
August 17, 2016
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … The nature of collaboration across the advanced bioeconomy is shifting dramatically – and we are seeing the democratization of R&D. … The CRISPR revolution As Dan Watkins of DFJ’s Mercury Fund put it, “There’s a total sea change in biology with CRISPR-CAS gene editing
August 3, 2016
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(IIT Today) Scientists from Illinois Institute of Technology received a patent for a method to genetically engineer bacteria and yeast to increase bioethanol production, especially from cellulosic material in biomass like twigs, branches, plant stalks and husks, and woodchips. Ben Stark, professor of biology, and former Ph.D. student Tony Sanny,
July 27, 2016
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(The China Post) Scientists in Singapore have found a green, efficient way to deal with the growing amount of food waste that the country produces. They have genetically modified a type of yeast so that it can convert fats in food waste to recover half its weight in butanol —
July 15, 2016
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(Biofuels International) DuPont Industrial Biosciences has launched a new fermentation system to help ethanol producers improve their yields and decrease sugar levels in their product. The DuPont Synerxia system, introduced at the Fuel Ethanol Workshop in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, increases yields by up to 2%, while lowering total sugar levels at drop
July 3, 2016
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Kansas, ICM said it is is currently in discussion with a short list of those interested in being selected as an early adopter of its Gen 1.5 technology, and they anticipate construction of the first commercial cellulosic plant of its kind built next to
June 20, 2016
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It’s an exciting time in yeast innovation for the fuel ethanol market. Gene editing technology has allowed for the development of pathway engineering to create yeast strains that produce ever-increasing ethanol yield while also delivering the enzymes needed to help break down sugars. We’ll walk through what it takes to
May 20, 2016
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(U.S. Department of Agriculture) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) today announced the joint investment of $10 million towards research that will drive more efficient biofuels production and agricultural feedstock improvements. These awards were made through the
May 9, 2016
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by Krista Eastman (Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center) An assistant research specialist at the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) has designed a new strain of yeast that could improve the efficiency of making fuel from cellulosic biomass such as switchgrass. Both the yeast strain and the method of its design could help
(Purdue University) Nancy Ho, founder and president of Green Tech America Inc. and a research professor emerita in Purdue University’s School of Chemical Engineering, will receive the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President Barack Obama. The award, announced Dec. 22, is the highest honor for technological achievement bestowed by
January 4, 2016
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(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Senior Scientist Min Zhang has a special relationship with Zymomonas mobilis, a rod-shaped bacterium that has bioethanol-producing capabilities. Of her 80 peer-reviewed papers and 21 U.S. patents in the field of biochemistry and biofuels, many reference this sugar-eating “bug.” Their fortuitous pairing
December 15, 2015
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(Biofuels Digest) In Canada, the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association released a 16-page synopsis of more than a dozen addresses at the recent Canadian Bioeconomy Summit. The synopsis team was led by Dr. Jack Saddler, … READ MORE Download Summaries Excerpt from Summaries: Sunrise Session – Reducing GHG Emissions through
December 14, 2015
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by Terry Devitt (University of Wisconsin-Madison News) The makers of beer, wine, biofuels and other products that depend on yeasts may soon have many more strains of the microorganism to work with, thanks to a new method for making interspecies yeast hybrids in the lab. … Orange-colored galls from the
December 7, 2015
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by Éanna Kelly (Science|Business) The problem: Finding efficient ways of producing ethanol from cellulose plant material such as corn husks or stalks, is a long-term research objective. The answer: Now scientists at KU Leuven have succeeded in producing what they claim to be unprecedented efficiency in biofuel production. Their spin out,
October 28, 2015
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by Melody M. Bomgardner (Chemical & Engineering News) Researchers at the Joint BioEnergy Institute transform biomass into energy-rich fuel molecules — .. JBEI researchers are zeroing in on concepts that others have decided are too difficult or would take too long to prove. Can you engineer a plant’s cell walls
October 26, 2015
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(Joule/BusinessWire) Joule, the pioneer of liquid fuels from recycled CO2, today announced that its fuel grade Sunflow®-E ethanol has been registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for commercial use in E10 and E15 gasoline blends. “We are approaching commercialization with a technology that is first of its kind,
October 2, 2015
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by Jens Nielsen (Science Magazine) For thousands of years, yeast has been used for making beer, bread, and wine. In modern times, it has become a commercial workhorse for producing fuels, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals such as insulin, human serum albumin, and vaccines against hepatitis virus and human papillomavirus. Yeast has
September 8, 2015
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by Nancy Stauffer (MIT Energy Initiative) Chemical engineers and biologists at MIT have found a simple way to make yeast produce more ethanol from sugars: Spike the mixture they’re growing on with two common chemicals. Adding potassium and an acidity-reducing compound helps the yeast tolerate higher concentrations of the ethanol they’re making
July 14, 2015
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by Maija Sihvonen* (Advanced Biofuels USA) The 23rd European Biomass Conference and Exhibition (EUBCE) held in Vienna 1-4 June was a massive event with nearly 1300 participants from 76 countries and some 800 presentations. The event consisted of multiple parallel events, including oral presentations, workshops and poster exhibitions. In biomass
June 29, 2015
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(University of Manchester) Scientists at The University of Manchester have made an important discovery that forms the basis for the development of new applications in biofuels and the sustainable manufacturing of chemicals. Based at the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology (MIB), researchers have identified the exact mechanism and structure of two
June 25, 2015
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by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine) A company based in Lund, Sweden, recently received a welcome notification from the U.S. EPA, indicating the company’s 90-day Microbial Commercial Activity Notice review has been completed without objections. This puts Taurus Energy AB in the position to commence commercial production and sales of
June 22, 2015
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Sweden, Taurus Energy AB, Lund, Sweden and Canadian based Lallemand have signed an agreement for collaboration with respect to the development, marketing, sale and distribution of Taurus’ Gen 2 platform on the U.S. market. READ MORE
May 26, 2015
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(University of Texas at Austin) Researchers in the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin have used a combination of metabolic engineering and directed evolution to develop a new, mutant yeast strain that could lead to a more efficient biofuel production process that would make biofuels
April 13, 2015
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(Phys.Org) Straw-powered cars could be a thing of the future thanks to new research from the University of East Anglia (UEA). A new study pinpoints five strains of yeast capable of turning agricultural by-products, such as straw, sawdust and corncobs, into bioethanol – a well-known alcohol-based biofuel. It is estimated
March 26, 2015
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( Institute of Food Research/Biomass Magazine) Researchers at the Institute of Food Research have developed a new way of rapidly screening yeasts that could help produce more sustainable biofuels. The new technique could also be a boon in the search for new ways of deriving valuable renewable chemicals from plant-based wastes,
(EurekAlert!/US Department of Energy Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory) Researchers with the Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI), a partnership that includes the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California (UC) Berkeley, have found a way to increase the production of fuels and other chemicals from biomass fermented by
March 5, 2015
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(Byogy/PR Newswire) Byogy Renewables, a biofuels producer based in San Jose, California, has executed a strategic partnership agreement with Gen 2 Energy, an alternative energy company from Ames, Iowa, to develop a more cost-effective biofuel production process. New yeast strains developed by Gen 2 Energy, Iowa State University and the USDA,
February 26, 2015
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by Jyoti Madhusoodanan (Chemical & Engineering News) Biofuels: Yeast designed to ferment compounds found in treated biomass could boost biofuel production When biofuel producers turn agricultural waste into ethanol, they start by treating the biomass with acid to hydrolyze complex carbohydrates into simpler sugars that microbes can munch on to
February 11, 2015
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … My company plays an important role in providing our super efficient yeast, named as the Ho-Purdue Yeast … efficiently convert corn mash added 15% cellulosic sugars to produce high concentrations of ethanol (16% ethanol). READ MORE
January 21, 2015
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by Kathleen Gallagher (Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel) The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, the technology transfer arm of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has granted a license to and taken a stake in Xylome Corp., a privately-held Madison biotech company. The agreement between WARF and Xylome involves the biotech start-up developing and marketing
November 11, 2014
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Massachusetts, Mascoma Corporation announced that it has completed the sale of its yeast business to Lallemand Inc., a privately owned company that researches, develops, produces and markets yeasts, bacteria, and related products. As part of the transaction, Lallemand has acquired the Mascoma company name and
November 5, 2014
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … Taurus Energy is a company working to develop the best possible yeast for fermentation of c5 sugars … We work with customers and their hydrolysate and try to provide a yeast that can ferment the hydrolysate in a short time and utilize all available sugar. … To
November 4, 2014
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(U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is recognizing landmark green chemistry technologies developed by industrial pioneers and leading scientists that turn climate risk into business opportunities, spurring innovation and economic development. “From academia to business, we congratulate those who bring green solutions and help solve critical
October 16, 2014
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(Science 20) The yeast has not been gene modified by the researchers; rather, they have used adaptive laboratory evolution to produce it. The method allows new characteristics to be produced without knowing which mutations are required to achieve them. Three yeast cultivations were subjected to a temperature of about 40
October 15, 2014
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by Anne Trafton (MIT News Office) Different environment helps yeast tolerate high levels of ethanol, making them more productive. Yeast are commonly used to transform corn and other plant materials into biofuels such as ethanol. However, large concentrations of ethanol can be toxic to yeast, which has limited the production
October 3, 2014
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … Producing enzymes and yeasts on site, as part of the complete biomass-to-fuels manufacturing process. … In recent years — the region around Straubing turned to biotech to access the high returns in high tech for its agriculture-replete economy — and Clariant decided to build its
September 29, 2014
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … The cellulosic scene in the EU is lively and well — greatly cheered by news of commercial-scale openings by POET-DSM, and Beta Renewables and the impending openings at Abengoa Bioenergy and DuPont. This week, the 4th ICLE conference for cellulosic ethanol is taking place in
September 26, 2014
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(Dyadic International Inc./Biomass Magazine) Dyadic International Inc., a global biotechnology company whose patented and proprietary technologies are used to develop, manufacture and sell enzymes and other proteins for the bioenergy, bio-based chemical, biopharmaceutical and industrial enzyme industries, recently announced that it has signed a collaboration agreement to commercialize second generation
August 8, 2014
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by Elizabeth Summer (livescience.com/Phage Biocontrol, Inc.) The beneficial microbes that convert milk into yogurt and act in people’s guts to promote digestive health cause big problems in ethanol fermentation tanks. When fermenting corn to create ethanol, lactic acid bacteria can contaminate the tanks and proliferate, inhibiting the growth of ethanol-producing yeast. The
August 6, 2014
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by Holly Jessen (Biomass Magazine) Edmonton, Alberta-based Syngar Technologies Inc. has announced two separate joint venture projects that will, together, help make hemp-to-cellulosic ethanol a step closer to reality. Syngar Technologies, which was featured in a March 2012, article in Ethanol Producer Magazine has licensed its Pulsed Low Ultra Sound Wave (PLUSWave) Technology, which
May 22, 2014
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(NYU Langone Medical Center/Biomass Magazine) An international team of scientists led by Jef Boeke, director of NYU Langone Medical Center’s Institute for Systems Genetics, has synthesized the first functional chromosome in yeast, an important step in the emerging field of synthetic biology, designing microorganisms to produce novel medicines, raw materials for food,
April 4, 2014
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(Lesaffre) Through its business unit Fermentis launched in 2003 Lesaffre has successfully served the fuel ethanol industry with yeast, yeast products and technical support. Aiming to concentrate their efforts on offering more specialized services and products to theirpartners in the first generation fuel ethanol industry, to continue innovating in the field
March 17, 2014
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Ron Kotrba (Biodiesel Magazine) The uses of glycerin – crude, USP-grade or otherwise – and other byproducts from biodiesel production are virtually limitless. Profiled here is the glycerin and coproduct research of three Next Generation Scientists for Biodiesel. READ MORE
March 6, 2014
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(University of Texas at Austin/Biodiesel Magazine) Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering have developed a new source of renewable energy, a biofuel, from genetically engineered yeast cells and ordinary table sugar. This yeast produces oils and fats, known as lipids, that can be used in place
March 5, 2014
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(Royal DSM/Ethanol Producer Magazine) Royal DSM, together with DONG Energy, announced it has demonstrated the combined fermentation of C6 and C5 sugars from wheat straw on an industrial scale. The combined fermentation results in a 40 percent increase in ethanol yield per ton of straw, which can result in significant
December 6, 2013
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(US Department of Energy) BETO recently published a new two-page overview document that highlights significant Office achievements from 2013. One noteworthy success was the demonstration of two cellulosic ethanol production processes at a cost of $2.15 or less per gallon. This accomplishment, combined with other milestone achievements, represents cost-saving technological
November 21, 2013
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(Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) Chickens could be the unexpected beneficiaries of the growing biofuels industry, feeding on proteins retrieved from the fermenters used to brew bioethanol, thanks to research supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). It has long been known that the yeasty broth left
November 1, 2013
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(The Economist) Energy technology: Making large amounts of fuel from organic matter has proved to be more difficult and costly than expected …As well as being available to countries without tar sands, shale fields or gushers, biofuels can help reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by providing an alternative to releasing fossil-fuel carbon into
September 6, 2013
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(Phys.Org) … Researchers from VIB (the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology) who are associated with KU Leuven have developed yeast strains that produce bio-ethanol from waste with an unprecedented efficiency. As a result, they are well placed to become important players on a global scale in this burgeoning industry. Johan Thevelein (VIB/KU Leuven):
August 30, 2013
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Abstract submission is now open for the 36th Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels and Chemicals (SBFC). The 36th SBFC will be held April 28-May 1, 2014 at the Hilton Clearwater Beach Hotel in Clearwater Beach, Florida. The deadline for abstract submissions is November 17, 2013. Submit Your Abstract Online >>
August 23, 2013
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by Andy McGlashen (Midwest Energy News) The exit of its majority owner and operator leaves the future uncertain for a long-delayed project that has attracted at least $120 million in public financing to turn wood from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula into fuel for vehicles. New Hampshire-based biofuels company Mascoma Corporation announced in
August 7, 2013
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by David Glass (D Glass Associates) In the final breakout session of the BIO World Congress on June 19, there was a second panel on scale-up and commercialization of cellulosic ethanol. As with the session on the conference’s first day, several common themes emerged from the four presentations on this
June 21, 2013
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by Ann Perry (US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service) A new strain of yeast that could help streamline cellulosic ethanol costs and production has been developed by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) researchers. This work, which supports the USDA priority of developing new sources of bioenergy, was conducted by
May 6, 2013
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by Helen Tunnicliffe (TCE Today) Moving process to mitochondria ups production 260% Chemical engineers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology have engineered yeast to increase production of isobutanol, a promising biofuel, by 260%. Isobutanol, a heavy alcohol, contains more energy than ethanol and is more compatible with existing fuel transport networks. Yeast
February 21, 2013
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by Binbin Chen, Hua Ling and Matthew Wook Chang (Biotechnology for Biofuels) Hydrocarbon alkanes, components of major fossil fuels, are considered as next-generation biofuels because their biological production has recently been shown to be possible. However, high-yield alkane production requires robust host cells that are tolerant against alkanes, which exhibit cytotoxicity.
February 14, 2013
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) …Now, yeast is a fungi, but fungi as a Kingdom is a lot broader than our friend yeast and, like Rodney Dangerfield, it been getting, by and large, no respect, no respect. Researchers have for years been using them as a kind of biological grenade
January 7, 2013
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by Nick Perry (The Australian) A Technology breakthrough by two Australian brothers could offer a solution to the world’s insatiable appetite for food and fuel. Phillip and Geoff Bell have developed a new way to produce ethanol from waste products such as sugar cane, instead of using food crops such
November 1, 2012
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(Iowa Renewable Fuels Association) As a part of its 10th Anniversary celebration of progress and prosperity, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) today released a list of the ethanol and biodiesel industry’s Top 10 efficiency and technology innovations of the past decade. The Top 10 list was compiled through a
September 5, 2012
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by Bradley J. Fikes (North County Times) Vegetable oils are versatile substances. They’re used not only for cooking, but also for making soaps and for biofuels. If Carlsbad-based Verdezyne Inc. is successful, you may soon be wearing them, in a manner of speaking. Verdezyne, a “green” industrial chemical company, has
September 4, 2012
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by Sally Bakewell (Bloomberg BusinessWeek) Novozymes A/S (NZYMB) agreement to market Terranol A/S’s yeast technology as the world’s biggest maker of enzymes seeks to make biofuels from energy crops and agricultural waste commercially viable. …Novozymes supplies enzymes to break down matter such as corn stover, sugarcane bagasse and wheat straw into
August 30, 2012
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(Biofuels International) Bioethanol yeast developing company Lesaffre, and its business unit Fermentis, has acquired xylose isomerase technology from yeast technology providers Butalco. …According to Butalco, the xylose isomerase technology enables an improved production of lignocellulosic biofuels as the enzyme is highly active in yeast cells and, in contrast to other
August 20, 2012
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(PR NewsWire) iDiverse announced that it has discovered a yeast gene that when inserted into yeast and properly modulated can increase ethanol production yield by up to 34%. “The gene functions by protecting the yeast against some of the lethal stresses encountered in the bioproduction process,” said John Serbin, Chief Business
July 25, 2012
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by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine) After nearly two years of collaborative research, biotechnology company BioTork LLC and the National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center have developed a yeast strain capable of fermenting the xylose found in ligno-cellulosic biomass in a commercial-scale environment. Xylose is the second most abundant sugar in ligno-cellulosic
May 30, 2012
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(Ceres) • Pilot project validates U.S.-produced sweet sorghum as a potential feedstock for advanced biofuels and bio-products. • Conversion efficiency of sweet sorghum sugars were similar to sugarcane. Energy crop company Ceres, Inc. (Nasdaq: CERE) today announced its improved sweet sorghum hybrids were successfully processed into renewable diesel by Amyris,
May 4, 2012
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by Lori Valigra (Mass High Tech) Renewable fuels company Mascoma Corp. of Lebanon, N.H., said Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine has completed its scientific review of the company’s MGT yeast product and supports its use to produce animal feed. In January, the company said it had implemented a
February 24, 2012
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by Silva, J. P. A., Mussatto, Solange I., Roberto, I.C., Teixeira, J. A. (Universidade do Minho/Repositorium) The ethanol production by Pichia stipitis was evaluated in a stirred tank bioreactor using semidefined medium containing xylose (90.0 g/l) as the main carbon source. Experimental assays were performed according to a 22 full factorial design to
February 1, 2012
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(Verdezyne) Verdezyne, Inc., a privately-held industrial biotechnology company focused on producing renewable chemicals and fuels from non-petroleum sources, has been granted a United States Patent on engineered microorganisms. Verdezyne was awarded U.S. Patent No. 8,093,037, titled “Engineered Microorganisms With Enhanced Fermentation Activity” for the company’s innovative engineering of a yeast which incorporates xylose
January 20, 2012
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(Mascoma/BusinessWire) Mascoma Corporation, a renewable fuels company, announced today that it has implemented key components of the commercialization strategy for its Mascoma Grain Technology, or MGT™, yeast product, which is the first commercial application of Mascoma’s proprietary consolidated bioprocessing (CBP) technology platform. The MGT product is a genetically-modified yeast designed
January 12, 2012
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(IFP Energies Nouvelles) The numerous research programmes looking at new-generation biofuels that were initiated over the last ten years are now starting to bear fruit. Although no plants are producing and marketing biofuels yet, the large-scale, industrial feasibility of second-generation biofuel production at competitive cost may be demonstrated in the short-term. As
December 30, 2011
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by Derek Mead (GreenTechMedia) Biofuel up-and-comers Codexis and Mascoma both have big news that means cellulosic ethanol production is right around the corner. …With traditional sugar feedstocks — and in the U.S., that means corn — up around $275 a ton, it would seem high time to tap into virtually
December 29, 2011
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(Gevo) Gevo, Inc., a renewable chemicals and advanced biofuels company, today received a patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) on another aspect of its yeast technology that enables the low-cost, high-yield production of biobased isobutanol. Gevo was awarded U.S. Patent No. 8,071,358, covering additional “Methods of
December 9, 2011
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(Atlanta Business Chronicle) The University of Georgia researchers created a “super strain” of yeast that ferments ethanol from pretreated pine as part of an effort to help biofuels take the place of gasoline for fuel. … UGA said their research shows pine fermented with the new yeast can successfully withstand
November 18, 2011
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by Jason Palmer (BBC News) Scientists have succeeded in forming a “feedback loop” between a computer and a common yeast to precisely control the switching on and off of specific genes. The computer controlled flashes of light to start and stop this gene expression, “learning” how to reach and maintain
November 7, 2011
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In the world at large, they are generally called pests. We call them ‘magic bugs’. They are like the SuperFriends of Saturday morning cartoons – Nature has certainly endowed them with magic powers. …Too often, public curiosity over microbial fuels begins and ends with microalgae.
November 4, 2011
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(Biofuels Journal) Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) held an event Oct. 4 at its Toyota Biotechnology and Afforestation Laboratory in Aichi prefecture to showcase technologies developed there as part of its biotechnology and afforestation businesses. Technology on display included a newly developed yeast that increases the production yield of cellulosic ethanol bio-fuel, …
October 4, 2011
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Intrigued by cellulosic ethanol and a new product called MGT, in Mascoma’s IPO? …Mascoma Corporation announced that it has filed an S-1 registration statement relating to a proposed $100 million initial public offering. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the
September 20, 2011
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(NewsWise/Johns Hopkins University) Johns Hopkins researchers create man-made system with built-in diversity generator In the quest to understand genomes—how they’re built, how they’re organized and what makes them work—a team of Johns Hopkins researchers has engineered from scratch a computer-designed yeast chromosome and incorporated into their creation a new system that
September 19, 2011
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(Trillium FiberFuels/Ethanol Producer Magazine) Trillium FiberFuels Inc. has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research grant to further its work in developing innovative technologies for creating fuel-grade ethanol from straw and other biomass. This latest award to Trillium from the National Science Foundation supports additional development of a unique enzyme
September 6, 2011
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(University of Illinois/Science Daily) University of Illinois scientists have engineered a new strain of yeast that converts seaweed into biofuel in half the time it took just months ago. …”The key is the strain’s ability to ferment cellobiose and galactose simultaneously, which makes the process much more efficient,” (Yong-Su) Jin
August 31, 2011
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(Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center) For thousands of years, bakers and brewers have relied on yeast to convert sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Yet, University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers eager to harness this talent for brewing biofuels have found when it comes to churning through sugars, these budding microbes can
August 1, 2011
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by William Lyons and Sten Stovall (Wall Street Journal) …”We don’t realize it, but we are living in the fossil age,” he (Royal DSM CEO Feike Sijbesma) argues. “Population will increase, urbanization will increase, temperature will increase and the price of oil will increase. It will also run out. “The fossil
August 1, 2011
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by Nikolai Khramtsov, Luise McDade, Alexander Amerik, Esther Yu, Kunjan Divatia, Alexander Tikhonov, Michael Minto, Georges Kabongo-Mubalamate, Zdenek Markovic, Marie Ruiz-Martinez and Steven Henck (Bioresource Technology/Science Direct) In this study an industrial Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast strain capable of fermenting ethanol from pretreated lignocellulosic material was engineered. Genes encoding cellulases (endoglucanase, exoglucanase and
July 1, 2011
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by Lallemand Ethanol Technology (Ethanol Producer Magazine) …The yet-to-be-named yeast is the first product to be patented (pending) and commercialized out of the exclusive partnership between Lallemand Ethanol Technology and Xylogenics Inc. Developed using extensive genomics knowledge, this new class of yeast is engineered to demonstrate characteristics that significantly change
June 30, 2011
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(DSM) Royal DSM, the global Life Sciences and Materials Sciences company, today announces that it has reached an agreement to acquire C5 Yeast Company B.V. (Bergen op Zoom, Netherlands) from Royal Cosun. The acquisition will allow DSM to combine C5 Yeast Company’s business with its own advanced yeast and enzyme
June 29, 2011
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(US Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Biomass Program will be conducting detailed biennial peer review meetings of its activities throughout the first half of 2011. The process will begin with platform reviews of the Program’s six technology areas between February
June 24, 2011
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(PR NewsWire/The Street) EdeniQ, Inc., a California-based clean technology company serving the global biofuels industry, announced today that it has licensed yeast technology from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) associated with the fermentation of C5 sugars, such as xylose, to ethanol. The license
June 14, 2011
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by Jeremy Fordham (Green-Trust.org) …Microorganisms are incredibly abundant and diverse, especially in their metabolic functionality. Consolidated bioprocessing takes advantage of this versatility. …Cellulose is a crystalline molecule that is critical to a plant cell’s structure, so it is hard for microbes to break down naturally. This is a very complicated
June 3, 2011
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(Verdezyne/BusinessWire) Verdezyne, Inc., an industrial biotechnology company developing cost-effective processes for the production of renewable fuels and chemicals, today announced it has closed a new funding round. New investors in this round include BP Alternative Energy Ventures and DSM Venturing B.V., and they join existing investors OVP Venture Partners and Monitor Ventures.
May 10, 2011
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(Logos Technologies) DOE commits full $20.5 million to retrofit and build pilot plant in Visalia, CA Logos Technologies®, Inc. and EdeniQ, Inc., announced U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) approval to fully fund $20.5 million in federal cost share under DOE’s Integrated Biorefinery Program to construct a Corn-to-Cellulosic Migration (CCM)TM pilot
May 6, 2011
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(Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory/PBS) Can emerging technology defeat global warming? The United States has invested tens of billions of dollars in clean energy projects as our leaders try to save our crumbling economy and our poisoned planet in one bold, green stroke. Are we finally on the brink of a
May 2, 2011
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) …The Gevo GIFT system – three innovations in one First, its magic bug that indeed, produces isobutanol at a far higher rate, yield and concentration than traditional yeasts. Second, an extraction system that gets the isobutanol out of the broth before the alcohol levels kill
April 11, 2011
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(Lund University) The researcher in question is Nadia Skorupa Parachin and the secret of her technique is enzymes that she extracted from garden soil. If ethanol can be successfully made from xylose then ethanol production could increase by over 20 per cent – to the benefit of cheaper environmentally friendly
March 11, 2011
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(Delft University of Technology) TU Delft and the Kluyver Centre have developed an innovative technology for efficient production of bioethanol from agricultural waste and licensed it to the Life Sciences and Material Sciences company DSM. As part of this licence agreement, DSM is investing in follow-up research at TU
March 4, 2011
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(Red Orbit) Gaining new insight into how efficiently the microbes in large bioreactors produce methane from brewery waste, Cornell scientists hope to use their new knowledge to shape these microbial communities to produce liquid biofuels and other useful products. The scientists Largus T. Angenent, associate professor of biological and environmental
March 1, 2011
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) …Is there enough energy, food, fiber and feed for all? Advances in industrial fermentation – a/k/a an incredulous “you’re making what? from what? using what? – will be the key to answering that question. The stars of this drama are using everything from sorbitol to steel waste gases,
March 1, 2011
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by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine) KL Energy Corp. is preparing to validate its modified process technology to turn sugarcane bagasse into ethanol. As the bitter winter turns to spring in the tiny town of Upton, Wyo., located on the northern edge of the Thunder Basin National Grassland in the
February 21, 2011
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(EnvironmentalExpert.com) Seaweed biofuel farms have come a step closer to reality with an improvement in the way seaweed sugars can be converted to ethanol. Dried seaweed can be fermented to produce ethanol but breaking down galactose, the dominant sugar in seaweed, is a slow process. Now, researchers have modified the
February 9, 2011
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(EurekAlert/University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana) A newly engineered yeast strain can simultaneously consume two types of sugar from plants to produce ethanol, researchers report. The sugars are glucose, a six-carbon sugar that is relatively easy to ferment; and xylose, a five-carbon sugar that has been much more difficult to utilize in
December 30, 2010
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(Innovations Report) An effort to increase biofuel production has led scientists to discover genes in yeast that improve their tolerance to ethanol, allowing them to produce more ethanol from the same amount of nutrients. This study, published in the December 2010 issue of GENETICS, shows how genetically altered yeast cells survive
December 23, 2010
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(PhysOrg.com) Is red seaweed a viable future biofuel? Now that a University of Illinois metabolic engineer has developed a strain of yeast that can make short work of fermenting galactose, the answer is an unequivocal yes. …(M)arine biomass can be easily degraded to fermentable sugars, and production rates and range
December 17, 2010
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(Wiley Press Room/Renewable Energy World) A team of Bioengineers in the United States have modified a strain of bacteria to increase its ability to produce ethanol. The research, published in Biotechnology and Bioengineering, reveals how adaptation and metabolic engineering can be combined for strain improvement, a positive development for the
December 14, 2010
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