USDA and DOE Partnership Awards $8.9M to 9 Projects to Develop Better Plants for Biofuels
The US Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy (DOE) are awarding $8.9 million to projects aimed at improving and accelerating genetic breeding programs to create plants better suited for bioenergy production. The research grants will be awarded under the joint DOE-USDA Plant Feedstocks Genomics for Bioenergy program, which is focused on fundamental investigations of biomass genomics to harness lignocellulosic materials for biofuels production.
The emphasis is on perennials, including trees and other nonfood plants that can be used as dedicated biofuel crops. Since such crops tend to require less intensive production practices and can grow on somewhat poorer quality land than food crops, they will be a critical element in a strategy of sustainable biofuels production that avoids competition with crops grown for food, according to the partners.
Combining DOE’s leadership in genome-scale technologies with USDA’s long experience in crop improvement will help accelerate development of such specialized crops and improve their effectiveness as feedstocks for biofuels production, the two agencies said.
New projects to be funded this year aim at enhancing productivity, yield, nutrient and water utilization, and sustainability of plant feedstocks. Research focuses on better understanding of basic plant processes that control cell wall composition, plant architecture, cell size and division, wood formation, nutrient uptake, carbon allocation and on the impact of temperature and water availability.
DOE’s Office of Science will provide $6.9 million in funding for seven projects, while USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture will award $2 million to fund two projects. Initial funding will support research projects for up to three years.
| Plant Feedstock Genomics for Bioenergy 2010 Awards | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grantee | Project | Project Goal | Funding | |||
| University of Delaware, Newark | Genome-Wide Analysis of miRNA Targets in Brachypodium and Biomass Energy Crops | Identify the targets of MicroRNAs (miRNAs) in different organs and under adverse environmental conditions in the model grass Brachypodium and in the energy crops switchgrass, Miscanthus, and sorghum. miRNAs are important regulatory molecules that repress selected “target†genes to enable normal development, stress responses, and other processes. This project should enhance understanding of regulatory networks and may suggest new strategies for improving biomass energy crops. | $868,794 (DOE) | |||
| University of Georgia, Athens | Organ and Tissue-Specific Sucrose Transporters: Important Hubs in Gene and Metabolite Networks Regulating Carbon Use in Wood-Forming Tissues of Populus | Investigate how sucrose transporter proteins (SUTs) function to facilitate the distribution of sucrose for transient storage and biosynthetic use among different pathways in the developing wood matrix. Wood for lignocellulosic feedstocks is synthesized from sucrose that is exported from leaves and then processed in the wood-forming organs. SUTs mediate the export and efficient movement of sucrose from source leaves to sink organs in all plant species. | $1,340,000 (DOE) | |||
| The Institute for Advanced Learning and Research | Development of a Low Input and Sustainable Switchgrass Feedstock Production System Utilizing Beneficial Bacterial Endophytes | Understand the molecular and physiological mechanisms by which interaction with bacterial endophytes promotes growth in the promising bioenergy crop switchgrass. The use of naturally occurring beneficial bacterial endophytes with switchgrass represents a practical and feasible way to develop a low-input and sustainable feedstock production system. | $734,759 (DOE) | |||
| Texas A&M University, College Station | Genomics of Energy Sorghum Biomass Accumulation | Identify the genetic and biochemical basis for increasing yield and improving the composition of high-biomass cellulosic energy sorghum. Select genotypes will be analyzed for stem biomass yield, structure, and composition. The resources developed will enable analysis of the genes that modulate these traits and facilitate improvement of energy sorghum and other bioenergy grasses. | $1,000,000 (USDA) | |||
By Green Car Congress on 09/02/2010 – 4:35 pm PST -- Green