Driving for Biofuels: New Technique Speeds Search for Biofuel Microbes
In the drive to derive clean, green and renewable liquid transportation fuels from cellulosic biomass, a critical factor will be finding or developing microbes that not only are able to ferment complex sugars, but are also able to withstand the high temperatures and other grueling conditions of fuel production, and do not become inhibited by the fuel that is being produced. One potential candidate has already emerged and researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) have made vital determinations about its metabolism via an unusual experimental route that promises to greatly speed up future research efforts in this field.
A Study Shows Biofuels Constitute a Viable and Durable Alternative to Reduce the Dependence on Oil
(Translated from the French) A thorough study undertaken by Sandia National Laboratories and General Motors Corp. revealed that the residues of plants and wood as well as the dedicated energy cultures could replace durably nearly one the third of the gasoline consumed from here 2030.
From Beer and Bread to Cars and Jets
Jay Keasling says the same yeast that we use to produce beer and bread will soon be fueling our cars and planes.
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Energy from E. coli
Jay Keasling watches as 700 billion Escherichia coli swish around inside a benchtop bioreactor in the brand-spanking new fermentation room of the Joint BioEnergy Institute in Emeryville, Calif. This isn't just any E. coli multiplying inside, Keasling says proudly, "This is a strain we engineered and now it's producing biodiesel." Full 'The Scientist' story.
At a Sleek Bioenergy Lab, a Lens on a Cabinet Pick
The Joint BioEnergy Institute, which encompasses the fourth floor of a high-tech office building here in a neighborhood of biotech companies, radiates a sleek ecological modernity: floorboards manufactured of recycled materials and laminated to look like bamboo, trendy office furniture and laboratories stocked with new equipment. Full NY Times story.
Jay Keasling - Saving the World, One Molecule at a Time
Ever since Alexander Fleming noticed a clump of blue-green mold destroying a neighboring culture of bacteria in a nearly discarded petri dish, scientists have searched the most unlikely of places for cures to human disease. Eventually, Fleming's serendipitous 1928 discovery led to the development of penicillin. Today's scientists have taken a more proactive approach. Oftentimes, their starting material is still as counterintuitive as a moldy plate. But rather than merely searching for cure-all compounds, a new subset of scientists known as synthetic biologists are trying to turn single-celled organisms like bacteria and yeast into tiny chemical factories that can build these compounds from scratch. Their work, which applies engineering principles to biological systems, represents the cutting edge of genetic research. And Jay Keasling, a chemical engineer at the University of California, Berkeley, is leading the pack. Not only has Keasling built the molecular tool kit necessary for this work, but he has made that tool kit freely available to his colleagues. He has also proved the new science's mettle by solving a real-world problem. Full Newsweek story.
Steven Chu will be Picked for Energy Secretary
It was just a week ago Steven Chu was at a dedication ceremony for the Joint BioEnergy Institute -- a new department of energy laboratory. "The Department of Energy has a glorious future ahead because it will provide many of the solutions that the world will need," said Chu.
It's unclear whether Chu knew of his impending nomination at the time of the event. Several sources confirm the Nobel Prize-winning physicist and the director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab is the President-elect's choice for energy secretary. East Bay Congressman Jerry McNerney (D) of Pleasanton, a new member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, says Chu is the perfect choice.
New Research Center Dedicated in Emeryville
To solve the world's energy and climate change crisis it will take a new generation of fuels.
To that end a new energy research center was dedicated in Emeryville Tuesday. It is a lab that hopes to grow its own ground-breaking research.
In a facility built for gene-splicing they held a ribbon-cutting Tuesday, a ribbon-cutting with expectations. Full Story & Video.
MBA Students Partner with National Lab Scientists to Commercialize Clean Tech.
USDA Honors California Researchers for Work in Developing Flood-Tolerant Rice.
JBEI Looks at Replacing Fossil Fuels
Molten Salts Give Biofuels a Boost
New Lab-on-a-Chip Technique to Boost JBEI Research
High fuel prices to make cellulosic biofuels increasingly competitive with gas
Bay Area’s Joint BioEnergy Institute Gets Financial Kick-Start from DOE (Sep. 28, 2007)
Bay Area Partnership to Host DOE Bioscience Center (Jun. 26, 2007)
