In Massachusetts, researchers at MIT and the Cambridge startup Novogy describe a new technique that gives producer microbes the upper hand against unwanted invaders, eliminating the need for such expensive and potentially harmful sterilization methods. The researchers engineered microbes, such as Escherichia coli, with the ability to extract nitrogen and phosphorous—two vital nutrients needed for […]
In Indonesia, a biology student at the University of Surabaya has determined that bacteria found in the Mount Ijens crater can be used to produce ethanol from wheat straw thanks to its high acidity level of zero. Though more research needs to be done on bacteria and other microorganisms that survive in the highly acidic […]
In Mexico, researchers at the Autonomous University of Coahuila is using algae for wastewater treatment and then producing biodiesel from the algae harvested after the water cleaning process. Researchers are working to develop a system that takes advantage of the best of both worlds provided by open systems that are cheaper and closed systems that […]
In New York state, Cornell University biological engineers have deciphered the cellular strategy to make the biofuel ethanol, using an anaerobic microbe feeding on carbon monoxide. To make biofuel from inorganic, gaseous industrial rubbish, the researchers learned that the bacterium Clostridium ljungdahlii responds thermodynamically – rather than genetically – in the process of tuning favorable […]
In Switzerland, Evolva said that the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will sponsor studies to test Evolva’s nootkatone against mosquitoes infected with Zika virus. The study will evaluate nootkatone in multiple formulations against wild type and insecticide-resistant mosquitoes that carry the virus. Studies will be conducted at Colorado State University (CSU) in […]
In Washington state, while relentless bright light brings many forms of cyanobacteria to their knees — figuratively, of course — Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 does the opposite, thriving and growing at a rate that far outpaces most of its peers. That makes the organism, commonly called a form of blue-green algae, an attractive target for […]
In Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Wolf signed a law on July 20 allowing the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and institutions of higher education to grow hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) for research purposes. Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences is working with the state department of agriculture to develop the policies, procedures and applications needed to facilitate […]
In New York state, Cornell University biological engineers have deciphered the cellular strategy to make the ethanol, using an anaerobic microbe feeding on carbon monoxide. To make biofuel from inorganic, gaseous industrial rubbish, the researchers learned that the bacterium Clostridium ljungdahlii responds thermodynamically – rather than genetically – in the process of tuning favorable enzymatic […]
In Spain, a consortium of six R&D centers in the Basque Autonomous Community, Navarre and France -NEIKER-Tecnalia, National Centre of Renewable Energies (CENER), Tecnalia Research & Innovation, Association of Industry of Navarre (AIN), Association for the Environment and Safety in Aquitaine (APESA) and the Centre for the Application and Transformation of Agro-resources (CATAR-CRITT)- are participating […]
In Washington, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, in partnership with Argonne National Laboratory, opened the application process to select the first national cohort of innovators for Chain Reaction Innovations. CRI is the second energy and science technology accelerator to open at a national laboratory and the first one located in the Midwest, […]
