GM Fungi Helps Convert Ordinary Straw to Sweetener
June 25, 2014| |
Erythritol, a calorie free sweetener, is widely used in Asia and gaining popularity in Europe and America. At the Vienna University of Technology (VUT), a method has now been developed to produce erythritol from ordinary straw through genetically modifying the fungus Trichoderma reesei.
The improved strain can be directly applied to the straw, where previously obtaining enzymes from mold cultures used to be cumbersome. Secondly, the mold can now produce erythritol directly from the straw.
Professor Robert Mach from VUT said "We knew that the mold fungus Trichoderma reesei is in principle capable of producing erythritol, but usually only in tiny quantities. By genetically modifying it, we managed to stimulate the production of an enzyme, which enables the large-scale production of the sweetener."
For more details about this research, read http://www.tuwien.ac.at/en/news/news_detail/article/8864/.
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