SBIR Phase II: Advanced Development of Novel Maize and Sorghum Bioenergy Plants Using Lignolink Technology

这一小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目将进一步展示利诺林克的技术潜力，将其用于改善纤维素生物质作物，将其作为生物能源和动物饲料行业的原料。木质纤维生物质是一种主要的可再生原料。木质纤维生物质转化为能源的关键步骤是将生物质酶消化成糖。木质素提供植物力量，是获取和提取纤维素以转化为糖的主要和最具挑战性的障碍。新的木质链接方法通过在生物质的木质素结构中插入蛋白质来极大地提高木质纤维素的消化率，从而帮助克服这一重大挑战。木质素结构的木质素链接改性在不损害植物在正常生长期间的强度或健康的情况下提供预期的益处。这是一个关键的突破。在NSF第一阶段SBIR的小规模试验中，杨木和玉米秸秆生物量的可发酵糖产量增加了50%以上，而不影响植物的适应性。在第二阶段的研究中，试验的范围将在玉米和杨树上扩大，无论是在被测试的细胞壁蛋白质的数量和类型上，还是在表现最好的品系的试验规模上。这将证明该技术在一年生谷类作物和多年生木质生物质来源中的普遍适用性，这些来源代表了纤维素生物质原料的全部范围。该项目的广泛影响/商业潜力从生物能源延伸到农业和生物材料行业。生物基产品是一种有吸引力的绿色和可持续的石油产品的长期替代品。Lignolink的技术允许使用更温和的预处理条件，从而提高产品产量和效率，从而有可能使纤维素生物燃料更具商业可行性和环境友好性。预处理是生物燃料生产中最大的单一成本，可能是经济可行性的一个重要限制因素。通过促进生物质的可处理性提高50%或更多的生物质产糖量本身具有巨大的潜力，可以提高将纤维素生物质用于能源、特种化学品和生物材料的商业可行性，因此应促进经济上可行的商业生产技术的开发。Lignolink的技术同样可以通过改善动物消化过程中的分解，提高用作牲畜饲料的生物量。这可以提高养分提取的效率，从而减少必要的土地基础和畜牧业对环境的影响。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will further demonstrate the potential of LignoLink's technology for improving cellulosic biomass crops as feedstocks for the bioenergy and animal feed industries. Lignocellulosic biomass is a major renewable feedstock. A critical step in the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to energy is enzymatic digestion of the biomass to sugars. Lignin provides plant strength and is the primary and most challenging barrier to accessing and extracting cellulose for conversion to sugars. The novel Lignolink approach helps overcome this significant challenge by inserting proteins into the lignin structure of biomass to greatly enhance the digestibility of lignocellulose. The Lignolink modification of the lignin structure provides the desired benefits without hurting the strength or the health of the plant during normal growth. This is a key breakthrough. Small scale trials in the NSF Phase I SBIR resulted in increases of over 50% in yields of fermentable sugars from poplar wood and corn-stover biomass, without affecting plant fitness. In Phase II research the scope of the trials will be expanded in maize and poplar, both in the number and type of cell wall proteins being tested and in the scale of the trials with the best performing lines. This will demonstrate the general applicability of the technology in both annual cereal crops and in perennial woody biomass sources, which represent the full spectrum of cellulosic biomass feedstocks. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project extends from bioenergy to agriculture and biomaterials industries. Biobased products are an attractive green and sustainable long-term alternative to petroleum based products. Lignolink's technology, has the potential to make cellulosic biofuels more commercially viable and more environmentally friendly by permitting the use of milder pretreatment conditions leading to greater product yields and efficiency. Pretreatment is the largest single cost in biofuels production, and can be a significant limiting factor in economic viability. Increases in yields of sugar from biomass of 50% or more through facilitating biomass treatability itself holds great potential to improve commercial viability of the use of cellulosic biomass for energy, specialty chemicals and biomaterials and thus should facilitate development of economically viable commercial production technology. Lignolink's technology could similarly improve biomass for use as feed for livestock, by improving breakdown during digestion in animals. This could increase efficiency of nutrient extraction, thereby reducing the necessary land base and environmental impact of animal agriculture.