Projects
Projects: Projects for Investigator |
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| Reference Number | BB/G016208/1 | |
| Title | New tools for the realization of cost-effective liquid biofuels from plant biomass (revised costs) | |
| Status | Completed | |
| Energy Categories | Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy, Production of other biomass-derived fuels (incl. Production from wastes)) 50%; Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy, Production of transport biofuels (incl. Production from wastes)) 50%; |
|
| Research Types | Basic and strategic applied research 100% | |
| Science and Technology Fields | BIOLOGICAL AND AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES (Biological Sciences) 100% | |
| UKERC Cross Cutting Characterisation | Not Cross-cutting 100% | |
| Principal Investigator |
Dr S (Simon ) Cragg No email address given Sch of Biological Sciences University of Portsmouth |
|
| Award Type | Research Grant | |
| Funding Source | BBSRC | |
| Start Date | 16 March 2009 | |
| End Date | 15 October 2013 | |
| Duration | 55 months | |
| Total Grant Value | £439,723 | |
| Industrial Sectors | Manufacturing; Transport Systems and Vehicles | |
| Region | South East | |
| Programme | Bioenergy Initiative (BEN) | |
| Investigators | Principal Investigator | Dr S (Simon ) Cragg , Sch of Biological Sciences, University of Portsmouth (99.998%) |
| Other Investigator | Prof M (Matt ) Guille , Sch of Biological Sciences, University of Portsmouth (0.001%) Dr J (John ) McGeehan , Institute of Biomedical and Biomolecular Science (IBBS), University of Portsmouth (0.001%) |
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| Web Site | ||
| Objectives | This grant is linked to BB/G016178/1. |
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| Abstract | The cost effective saccharification of lignocellulosic biomass is recognized as a pivotal technical hurdle that must be overcome before the production of liquid biofuels from lignocellulosic biomass becomes a commercial reality. The search for new enzymes to disrupt lignin and release sugars from lignocellulose is being pursued aggressively around the world. We have identified a unique opportunity for the UK to become a major contributor to this competitive field. Limnoria are crustacean wood borers that can digest lignocellulose, and are unusual in having an effectively sterile digestive tract. This indicates that they can digest lignocellulose without the aid of resident gut flora in contrast to animals such as termites, which depend on such microbes. We have established the potential for gene and enzyme discovery in this organism by the provision of a potentially comprehensive transcriptomic database comprising over 280,000 ESTs. Initial analysis of the data reveals a transcriptome dominated by abundant transcripts representing several broad classes of proteins. Glycosyl hydrolases from 12 different families account for more than 25% of the ESTs, with two classes of putative cellulases and cellobiohydrolases alone accounting for more than 20%. Sequences with high homology to hemocyanins and phenol oxidases account for a further 17% of the transcriptome, followed by sequences with homology to proteases, ferritin, oxygenases, and a group with low homology to fatty acid binding proteins. We will study the digestive process in Limnoria in detail using proteomic and metabolomic analyses, and will characterize the enzymatic activities of recombinant proteins representing many of the genes involved in the digestive process. These enzymes will be assessed for utility in industrial lignocellulose saccharification, and we will investigate the use of these genes expressed in transgenic plants to improve the saccharification potential of lignocellulosic feedstocks. | |
| Publications | (none) |
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| Final Report | (none) |
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| Added to Database | 22/11/13 | |
