Bioeconomy News

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In Mooren konkurriert eine seltene Bakterienart mit Archaeen und bremst so den Methanausstoß der Feuchtgebiete.
In moors, a rare bacterial species competes with archaea and slows down methane emissions from the bogs.

Bog bacteria curb methane emission

A rare bacterial species competes with methane-forming archaea and thus slows down global warming, a study by researchers from Braunschweig and Vienna shows.

Mit Hilfe selbst gebildeter organischer Substanzen kann Weizen sich besser gegen Hitze- oder Überflutungsstress schützen.
With the help of self-generated organic substances, wheat can better protect itself against heat or flooding stress.

Making use of the plant's defences

A new research consortium plans to investigate the natural defences of wheat in order to protect the plant against diseases and pests.

Mit Hilfe selbst gebildeter organischer Substanzen kann Weizen sich besser gegen Hitze- oder Überflutungsstress schützen.
With the help of self-generated organic substances, wheat can better protect itself against heat or flooding stress.

Making use of the plant's defences

A new research consortium plans to investigate the natural defences of wheat in order to protect the plant against diseases and pests.

Gewinner des Gründerwettbewerbs Plan B Sebastian Wittmann vom freisicht (rechts im Bild)! v.l.n.r.: Armin Kienberger (Werksleiter Bischof und Klein), StS Roland Weigert, Moderator des Abends: Dominik Glöbl
Winner of the PlanB business start-up competition "Plan B" Sebastian Wittmann vom freisicht (right). From left to right: Armin Kienberger (Plant Manager Bischof and Klein), StS Roland Weigert, presenter Dominik Glöbl

Designer wooden eyewear win PlanB award

With its solid wood glasses, the start-up freisicht has won the Bavarian start-up competition PlanB. For the third time, the event awarded business ideas for the bio-based economy.

„Banabooms“ sollen aus Bananen hergestellt werden, die zu reif sind, um noch verkauft zu werden.
"Banabooms" are to be made from bananas that are too ripe to be sold.

Breakfast cereals from unsold foods

Students of the University of Hohenheim have won a European competition against food waste with their alternative breakfast cereals called "Banaboom". 

Humane Milch-Oligosaccharide bilden die wichtigsten Produkte der Firma Jennewein Biotechnologie.
Human milk oligosaccharides are the most important products of Jennewein Biotechnologie.

Healthy baby food for China

Jennewein, a biotech company specializing in human milk sugar, is researching milk products in cooperation with the Chinese market leader for dairy goods.

Das neu entdeckte Molekül könnte langfristig etablierte Herbizide ersetzen.
The newly discovered molecule could replace established herbicides in the long term.

Weed killer from sugar molecule

In cyanobacteria, researchers at the University of Tübingen have discovered a molecule that is harmless to humans and that has the potential to replace the controversial glyphosate.

Viele Bienenarten sind vom Aussterben bedroht.
Many bee species are threatened with extinction.

Bee protection with DNA chip

The most important bee species are still partially present in Europe. The EU project SmartBees ends with this good news and leaves beekeepers with tools for bee protection.

Um herauszufinden, warum sich die Jagdspinne Cupiennius salei so gut an senkrechten Oberflächen halten kann, untersucht das interdisziplinäre Forschungsteam winzige Hafthaare auf den Spinnenbeinen.
In order to find out why the Cupiennius salei hunting spider can stick so well to vertical surfaces, the interdisciplinary research team is investigating tiny adhesive hairs on the spider legs.

How spiders cling to the ceiling

Using modern X-ray technology, researchers have determined the adhesive structure of spider legs. The parallel fiber structure could serve as a model for new materials.

Getreidefeld mit Frauenspiegel und anderen Ackerwildkräutern Getreidefeld mit Wildkräutern | © Michael Welling
Grain field with corn bellflower and other wild herbs

Clear advantage for organic farming

A recent study by the Thünen Institute shows: Organic agriculture scores significantly better than conventional agriculture in terms of resource conservation, soil fertility and biodiversity.

DLR researcher Paul Zabel spent a year in Antarctica, testing the farming of vegetables in the EDEN-ISS greenhouse.

Farming vegetables in perpetual ice

After a year of growing vegetables in Antarctica, Paul Zabel has returned to Germany. The results are mostly positive - in total, more than 270 kilograms of vegetables were harvested.

Die Polymere werden aus Bakterien isoliert und anschließend chemisch modifiziert.
The polymers are isolated from bacteria and then chemically modified.

Smooth running with biobased lubricants

Partners from research and industry are developing environmentally friendly lubricants based on biopolymers.

Picture of two cell clones (in green), each of which originated from a single cambium stem cell and contributed to both the wood (xylem) and the bast (phloem).

Stem cells produce wood and bast

According to researchers from Heidelberg, so-called bifacial stem cells alternate between producing wood and bast cells.

Viele Meter unter der Erde befindet sich ein riesiges Wasserreservoir, das für Menschen überlebenswichtig ist: das Grundwasser.
Many metres underground there is a huge reservoir of water that is vital for human survival: groundwater.

Delayed climate impact on groundwater

The influence of climate change on groundwater is insidious. The slow reaction time could prove to be an ecological time bomb, as an international team of researchers discovered.

In Paris, Covestro is presenting a biobased hair gel and a biodegradable sun lotion.

Covestro presents sustainable cosmetics

Cosmetics are a growing market but mostly based on petrochemicals. During a trade show in Paris Covestro is now presenting a new sustainable hair gel and sun protect lotion.

Using tomatoes and ground beef as examples, Fraunhofer researchers have trained the intelligent algorithm of their food scanner. The scanner can now infer the shelf life of food items based on the measured values.

Measuring shelf life with infrared light

Fraunhofer physicists have developed a pocket-sized food scanner that uses infrared light and intelligent algorithms to determine the shelf life of food.

Just a few centimetres in size, but extremely absorbent: The wood chips developed by materials scientists at TU Dresden are designed to clean up water after an oil spill.

Fighting oil spills with wood chips

Materials scientists at TU Dresden have developed wood fibre-based oil binders that can clean water in the event of an oil spill.

At the end of 2018, the PANBioRA project meeting took place in Tirana, Albania.

Quick evaluation of biomaterials

The European project PANBioRA is investigating and developing tools and methods in order to assess the risks of new biobased medical products in a standardised way.

Through contact with water, the seed of Neopallasia pectinata from the family of composite plants forms a slimy sheath. The white cellulose fibres anchor it to the seed surface.

New plant-based nanofibers

Zoologists in Kiel have discovered highly adhesive cellulose nanofibres in the slimy protective layer of plant seeds, which may be very useful for biomedical applications.

The magnetic microbe Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense during its division: magnetite crystals are colored red and the cytoskeleton green.

Microbe of the year goes to Magnetospirillum

Due to its magnetic properties, the microbial species Magnetospirillum has enormous potential for biotechnological applications and was voted Microbe of the Year 2019.