Biomass Recalcitrance: Engineering Plants and Enzymes for Biofuels Production

TLDR

Lignocellulosic biomass is a sustainable source of fermentable sugars, but its natural resistance—biomass recalcitrance—has made conversion costly, prompting the development of technologies aimed at making the process cost‑competitive. The study aims to overcome the evolved chemical and structural barriers of biomass recalcitrance to enable sustainable energy production.

Abstract

Lignocellulosic biomass has long been recognized as a potential sustainable source of mixed sugars for fermentation to biofuels and other biomaterials. Several technologies have been developed during the past 80 years that allow this conversion process to occur, and the clear objective now is to make this process cost-competitive in today's markets. Here, we consider the natural resistance of plant cell walls to microbial and enzymatic deconstruction, collectively known as "biomass recalcitrance." It is this property of plants that is largely responsible for the high cost of lignocellulose conversion. To achieve sustainable energy production, it will be necessary to overcome the chemical and structural properties that have evolved in biomass to prevent its disassembly.