Identity, function, and transport of lignocellulose-active enzymes in wood-eating (xylotrophic) bivalves (shipworms)

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Shipworms are worm-like marine clams that burrow in wood, using wood for both food and shelter. Because few animals eat wood, there is great interest in those that can. Previous research in this investigator's laboratory suggested that shipworms digest wood using a method that is different from any other animal. Most animals that eat wood, e.g. termites or wood-eating roaches, do so with the help of enzymes made by bacteria and other microbes that live in their digestive systems. Shipworms, however, have few bacteria in their digestive systems. Instead, they rely on bacterial symbionts that live inside the cells of their gills to produce the digestive enzymes they need. This is unique because no other known animal relies on intracellular symbionts to produce digestive enzymes. In this project, the enzymes produced by these bacteria will be identified in order to characterize their functions, and to determine how these enzymes are transported from inside the cells of the shipworm's gills to their digestive system. These enzymes are potentially valuable because they convert wood, the most abundant biomaterial on earth, into soluble sugars that can be fermented into renewable biofuels, e.g. ethanol. They may also be used in production or processing of paper, textiles, detergents, food, animal feed and waste materials. This project will contribute to Ocean Genome Legacy's ongoing postdoctoral training and graduate education programs, public outreach for environmental literacy, and internship programs for undergraduate, high school, and minority students. The investigators will also work with colleagues in the Pacific Northwest to develop a STEM education program for Native Alaskan students and teachers that integrates shipworm biology with traditional Native Alaskan ecological knowledge and Western science; this program will utilize educational curricula translated into the Haida language.