Brown-Rot Genome can Teach us How to Make Better Biofuels

By decoding and analyzing the genome of the brown-rot fungus Postia placenta, a team of international scientists has gained valuable insights on how brown-rot fungi digest wood. The team believes that the brown-rot fungus’ capability to degrade lignocellulosic biomass can be harnessed to produce better biofuels.

Lignin, a biopolymer that plays a crucial role in water conduction and protection against pests, is of particular interest to biofuel researchers since it binds cell walls and prevents the extraction of cellulose. Only by removing lignin could cellulose be broken down, fermented, and distilled into liquid transportation fuel. This is where the destructive capabilities of brown-rot come in.

Examination of Postia genome and transcriptome revealed a repertoire of genes and expression patterns distinct from those of other known cellulose-degrading microbes including a distinct set of genes coding for biomass-degrading enzymes. The scientists also compared the genetic blue prints of brown-rot, white-rot and soft-rot fungi. Randy Berka, one of the paper senior author said that such comparisons “will increase understanding of the diverse mechanisms and chemistries involved in lignocellulose degradation. The findings may enable biotechnologists to devise new strategies to enhance efficiencies and reduce costs associated with biomass conversion for renewable fuels and chemical intermediates.

Read the complete article at http://www.jgi.doe.gov/News/news_09_02_05.html The paper published by PNAS is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0809575106 The annotated genome has been made available at http://www.jgi.doe.gov/Postia