15 NSFBIO - Synthetic Biology for Lignin Utilization

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Our current reliance on fossil fuels is unsustainable and there is a clear need to find alternative sources of renewable fuels and chemicals to meet the needs of an expanding global population. A vast amount of work has been done in developing the technologies to turn waste plant material (biomass) into sugar that can be fermented to produce bioethanol for our cars, trains and planes. This relies on enzymes, like those used in washing detergents, to break down the plant material so that that it can be converted into biofuels - a direct alternative to fossil fuels. Although the technology now exists to do this, it is simply too expensive. So how can we make it cheaper?Plant cell walls contain cellulose and it is this polymer that can be broken down into sugars to make fuels. However, up to one-third of plant material is made up of a sticky brown compound called lignin. This is currently vastly underused in commercial plants and it is mainly burned to generate power. This is a huge waste, and one of the reasons that biofuels are currently so expensive. Lignin is actually a very valuable compound, and with the right enzymes, can be turned into useful products such as chemicals, plastics and even carbon-fibre. Not only would these materials be renewable and sustainable, their high value would make biofuels cheaper.As usual, nature already has the answer. We have found microbes that can live on lignin as a food source and have evolved powerful enzymes break this resistant compound apart. We plan to research these enzymes and link them together in new systems to make them efficient. We will use genetics to help us evolve better enzymes, work out their 3D structures and use advanced computer models to work out the best combinations. If we succeed, we have the potential to make biofuel production commercially viable and create a new range of plant-based products. The result will be transportation fuels that don't rely on dwindling fossil fuel reserves, are sustainable and are kinder to the environment.