Bioeconomy News

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In the final panel discussion, the participants agreed that new approaches will lead to new solutions for a more sustainable economy and industry.

TU Berlin fosters green chemistry

The Technical University Berlin set up a start-up center for innovative ideas for a more sustainable economy. The advisory board includes high-ranking members from research and industry.

Für den Wald ist Stress normal – die Zunahme der Störungen durch den Klimawandel hingegen nicht.
Forests are of irreplacable worth for ecosystems and they provide the sustainable raw material wood. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research is now funding projects towards the sustainable use of forest wood.

Funding for sustainable use of wood

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research launched its first funding measure towards the sustainable use of forest wood. This is part of the "Bioeconomy in the North" initiative.

Focus on sustainability research

How far has the implementation of the UN sustainability goals come? This and other questions were at the core of a Leibniz Association conference in Berlin in mid-September.

Die Symbiose mit Mykorrhiza-Pilzen ist äußerst vorteilhaft für Pflanzen. Jenaer Forscher konnten die Besiedelung nun erstmals auch in oberirdischen Pflanzenteilen der Tabakart Nicotiana attenuata nachweisen.

Mycorrhizal markers in leaves

For the first time, researchers identified metabolites in above-ground parts of a plant that reveal its symbiosis with mycorrhizal fungi. This will advance targeted breeding endeavors.

Over the last few years the aerospace industry has worked towards decreasing a plane's weight in an effort to save fuel. Now, Airbus and AMSilk have joined forces to develop a new biocomposite for lightweight but sturdy planes.

Airplanes made of biopolymers

The German biotechnology company AMSilk is partnering with Airbus to develop novel biocomposite fibers for lightweight, high-performance planes that will require less fuel.

Dandelion aren't just fun for kids or can be used as a rubber source. Dandelion root inulin is also often used as a food additive.

Dandelion inulin crystallizes in foods

Researchers from Mainz have found out why the addition of inulin from dandelion changes the texture of food: The colder the mixture, the more it crystallizes.

Corn plants treated with an iron-gramibactin complex show increased chlorophyll synthesis and develop darker leaves (four leaves on the right) than controls with iron-free gramibactin (left).

New iron transporter discovered

Iron is essential for plant growth and harvest yields. Now, researchers in Jena discovered a new iron transporter that significantly improves the productivity of plants.

Genome editing is a promising tool for plant breeding

Bioeconomy Council calls for new GMO laws

Following the EU's decision to classify crops created by genome editing technologies as GMOs, the German Bioeconomy Council urges politicians to modernize genetic engineering laws.

Wheat provides mankind with nearly one fifth of its caloric input and is thus one of the most important crops worldwide. An international research team with vital support by Munich- and Gatersleben-based researchers deciphered its genome.

Complex wheat genome decoded

An international research team managed to decipher the gigantic and complex wheat genome. The new information is hoped to help in breeding more yield-efficient wheat varities.

Waldwachskundler aus München fanden heraus, dass Bäume wie Buchen zwar schneller wachsen, dass Holz aber auch leichter ist.
Munich-based forest growth experts discovered that the wood of traditional trees such as beech is becoming lighter and lighter.

Climate change reduces weight of wood

Domestic trees are growing faster and faster, but the wood is also losing weight, according to Munich forest researchers.

Microbes and fungi are in a constant state of war for resources in the soil, globally. The balance between them is also affected by human activity, regional differences and climate change.

War of the soil microbes

An international research team analysed the soil microbiome. Bacteria and fungi are constantly fighting for resources and fungi even produce antibiotics to gain an advantage.

Biokohle kann dazu beitragen, Biogas in Erdgasqualität zu produzieren.
Biocoal can help to produce biogas of natural gas quality.

Biocoal from fermentation waste

Biogas contains too much carbon dioxide compared to natural gas. Researchers have now produced a new type of active carbon from the fermentation residues of the biogas plant, which removes carbon dioxide from the biogas.

Ob Blattkäfer oder Gecko: Ihr Talent auf glatten und steilen Flächen selbst kopfüber Halt zu finden, begeistert Materialforscher seit jeher.
Be it leaf beetles or geckos: Materials researchers have always been fascinated by the talent for finding hold even upside down on smooth and steep surfaces.

Adhesives modeled after beetle feet

Bionic scientists at the University of Kiel have designed silicone material surfaces based on the model of a leaf beetle, thus significantly increasing its adhesion to other materials.

Ready-to-eat foods like slices of sausage or cheese can contain bacteria such as salmonella.

Protecting food with plasma

Researchers from Hannover have found a way to make food safer: Cold plasma succeeded in killing bacteria in sausages.

It is virtually impossible to identify inferior breast implants. However, this could soon change.

Branding breast implants with tomato DNA

Using DNA snippets from tomatoes, researchers hope to identify breast implants in a way that prevents them from being falsified. This will enable them to track down inferior forgeries more quickly. 

Das klimaschädliche Kohlendioxid könnte bald schon als industrieller Rohstoff Karriere machen.

Enzymes turn greenhouse gas into feedstock

Munich biotechnologists have developed a highly efficient method to extract large amounts of the amino acid methionine from climate-damaging CO2.

The brown lignin is a waste product of the paper industry. Muhannad Al Aiti, a Dresden-based researcher, is investigating how best to use lignin for the prodcution of sustainable, bio-based carbon fibres.

New carbon fibres made from lignin

Manufacturing carbon fibres from sustainable resources is expensive – until now. A researcher at TU Dresden develops new and efficient manufacturing processes.

Synbio-Illustration
In Synthetic Biology, researchers assemble systems with completely new properties from biological modules.

Bioengineers build intelligent materials

Molecular biologists from Freiburg have constructed intelligent materials from biological modules that can absorb and process information.

Genome Editing-Verfahren wurden vom EuGH als Gentechnik eingestuft
The long-awaited ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union states that plants bred via the genome-editing tool CRISPR-Cas are to be regulated according to the strict directive for genetically modified organisms.

Surprise ruling by ECJ

The Court of Justice of the European Union declared that crops bred via the gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas are "GMOs" and are to be regulated as such.

Der von Mosa Meat 2013 vorgestellte erste Burger aus der Petrischale wird für den Marktauftritt vorbereitet.
Mosa Meat created the first cultured hamburger in 2013. After a successful series A financing round, the spin off company from Maastricht University now prepares to bring the burger to market.

Merck invests in cultured meat

The German pharma company Merck is investing in the development of cultured meat by the Dutch start-up Mosa Meat.