The U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI) is among the world leaders in sequencing the genomes of microbes, focusing on their potential applications in the fields of bioenergy and environment. ...

Biology - Biotechnology

May 05, 2013 5 / 5 (4) 0 |

Rapidly growing trees like poplars and willows are candidate "biofuel crops" from which it is expected that cellulosic ethanol and higher energy content fuels can be efficiently extracted. Domesticating these ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Mar 24, 2013 5 / 5 (1) 2 |

An international consortium of researchers published a high-quality draft assembly of the simplest cotton genome in the Dec. 20, 2012 issue of Nature. In the study, researchers traced the evolution of cot ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Dec 19, 2012 5 / 5 (1) 0 |

Many of the world's most important photosynthetic eukaryotes such as plants got their light-harnessing organelles (chloroplasts) indirectly from other organisms through endosymbiosis. In some instances, this ...

Biology - Cell & Microbiology

Nov 28, 2012 5 / 5 (3) 0 |

A consortium of 20 research groups, including Wageningen UR Plant Breeding, part of Wageningen UR, has mapped the entire genome of the button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus). This represents a major step forwar ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Oct 08, 2012 3.8 / 5 (4) 0 |

In the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico two years ago, various strategies were deployed to prevent 4.9 million barrels of light crude oil from fouling the waters and reaching ...

Space & Earth - Environment

Jun 21, 2012 not rated yet 0

Without fungi and microbes to break down dead trees and leaf litter in nature, the forest floor might look like a scene from TV's "Hoarders."

Biology - Biotechnology

Mar 22, 2012 3.7 / 5 (3) 0 |

From the North Pole to the Arctic Ocean, the frozen soils within this region keep an estimated 1,672 billion metric tons of carbon out of the Earth's atmosphere. This sequestered carbon is more than 250 times ...

Biology - Cell & Microbiology

Nov 06, 2011 4.8 / 5 (6) 1 |

The nation's Renewable Fuels Standard calls for annual production of 36 billion gallons of biofuel by 2022. One of the biggest hurdles to achieving this goal lies in optimizing the multistep process involved ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Oct 02, 2011 4 / 5 (2) 0 |

Located between 200 and 1,000 meters below the ocean surface is a "twilight zone" where insufficient sunlight penetrates for microorganisms to perform photosynthesis. Details are now emerging about a microbial metabolic pathway ...

Biology - Cell & Microbiology

Sep 01, 2011 4.5 / 5 (2) 0 |

Feared by realtors and homeowners alike, dry rot due to the fungus Serpula lacrymans causes millions of dollars worth of damage to homes and buildings around the world. This brown rot fungus' capacity to bre ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Jul 14, 2011 4.8 / 5 (4) 0 |

In order to realize the full potential of advanced biofuels that are derived from non-food sources of lignocellulosic biomass—e.g., agricultural, forestry, and municipal waste, and crops such as poplar, ...

Chemistry - Biochemistry

Jun 30, 2011 5 / 5 (1) 0 |

Fungi play key roles in nature and are valued for their great importance in industry. Consider citric acid, a key additive in several foods and pharmaceuticals produced on a large-scale basis for decades with ...

Biology - Biotechnology

May 13, 2011 not rated yet 0 |

Fungi play significant ecological and economic roles. They can break down organic matter, cause devastating agricultural blights, enter into symbiotic relationships to protect and nourish plants, or offer ...

Biology - Biotechnology

May 03, 2011 4.7 / 5 (3) 0 |

Algae play key roles in the global carbon cycle, helping sequester significant amounts of carbon. Some algal species can bloom, or become so numerous, that they discolor coastal waters and reduce the amount ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Feb 21, 2011 4 / 5 (2) 0 |