Biotech Company Finds Genes Enabling One-Step Biofuel Process

A team from LS9 Inc., in South San Francisco, California published results of research describing the discovery of engineered genes that create alkanes — the hydrocarbon building blocks of gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel — from sugar. The company says this discovery, published in today’s issue of Science magazine, accelerates the process of converting biomass into fuel-grade alkanes.

The LS9 team — Andreas Schirmer, Mathew A. Rude, Xuezhi Li, Emanuela Popova, and Stephen B. del Cardayre — examined the genomes of cyanobacteria, a type of bacteria that naturally produces alkanes, and found one cyanobacteria that did not produce alkanes. By comparing the genomic sequences of the alkane producing and non-producing organisms, they were able to isolate and identify the genes that make possible alkane production.

The researchers then tested the biosynthetic genes in Escherichia coli bacteria, organisms often used in genetic research, which succeeded in producing alkanes.

The directness and simplicity of the process, says del Cardayre, LS9’s vice president of R&D, is what makes this discovery so important. “This is a one step sugar- to-diesel process that does not require elevated temperatures, high pressures, toxic inorganic catalysts, hydrogen or complex unit operations.” Other processes normally require costly and energy intense chemical conversion technologies such as distillation or hydrogenation.

The company says it plans to use this discovery to accelerate its technology and scale up production of biodiesel fuel.

Photo: Horia Varlan/Flickr