Study makes plant sugars more accessible for biofuel production
Researchers collaborating through the Center for Bioenergy Innovation recently developed a way to make the sugars in plant cells more accessible for producing second-generation biofuels. The results are published in Carbohydrate Polymers.
The outer walls of plant cells are constructed from polysaccharides, molecules made of bonded sugars. These molecules determine the physical properties of plants and affect their growth. A metabolic reaction called acetylation modifies the sugar chains to support life processes like cell wall strengthening.
