Agriculture sciences

Bioengineering improves photosynthesis

The number of people on the planet and thus the number of hungry mouths to feed is constantly growing and is expected to exceed 9 billion by the year 2050. Thus, there is an urgent need to improve crop yield for food output. To meet this demand, researchers lead by Manajit Hayer-Hartl at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Munich aim to increase the efficiency of photosynthesis and thus crop productivity by artificially engineering the plant Rubisco enzyme.

Transforming plants into bio-factories

Plants produce a number of metabolites with diverse functions. Many of these metabolites are not only useful to the plant itself, but also have positive effects in humans and animals. However, the extraction of these compounds in sufficient quantities from the naturally producing resources is often laborious and costly. While some metabolites can be produced in bacteria, so far none can be manufactured in plants themselves.

Biofuels: it’s all in the milk

At first glance, the evergreen Caper Spurge (Euphorbia lathyris) is a less-than-impressive plant. Nevertheless, this herb does indeed pack some punch: the seeds contain 40-50 percent fatty oil. This abundantly flowing ‘latex’ also contains 8-12 percent volatile unsaturated hydrocarbons known as terpenes. What as really attracting the interest of scientists is the terpenes that take the form of energy-rich ‘triterpenoids’. This is because they represent a possible additive for biofuels.

Tiny alginate "factories" create new wound dressing

Alginates act like a sponge. The biopolymer, which is obtained from brown algae, can absorb huge amounts of germs and liquid. Because of its gelling properties, it is in great demand for medical wound dressings. However, the quality of algae-based alginates varies, as they are highly sensitive to environmental influences.

A robot-assistant for vine-growers

Cultivating a new vine variety is a laborious undertaking. Even in the earliest stages, excessive heat, cold or fungal infestations can affect the plant. Usually the damage is noticeable only when it is already too late. Wine-makers have to invest a great deal of time in collecting data on characteristics such as colour, size and other phenotypic features of grapes. However, in the future they could save themselves that effort — thanks to the PHENObot.

Optimizing flax for biomaterials

Flax, also known as linseed, is a fibrous plant that was used as the basic raw material for textiles for hundreds of years, before being eclipsed by cotton. But for some time now, flax has been drawing attention again: Specifically, materials researchers are discovering new potential in it. The very stiffness and durability of the fibres that is something of a disadvantage for textiles is what the scientists are looking for in order to create new composite materials. "The plant has a thin stalk that is extremely rigid.

More sugar in the beet

The sugar beet is one of the more recent arrivals on the fields of the world’s temperate zones, not least because it took until the 18th century for German plant breeders to significantly increase the sugar content of fodder beet. Once this had been achieved, the groundwork was laid for the industrial production of sugar. Today, about one third of the sugar consumed worldwide derives from sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), generating an annual turnover of around €25 billion. Beet is also used in the production of bioenergy, including bioethanol.

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