Lignocellulose is the most abundant plant cell wall component of the biosphere and the most voluminous waste produced by our society. Fortunately, it is not toxic or directly harmful, but our major waste disposal facilities - the landfills - are rapidly filling up with few realistic alternatives. Because cellulose is pure glucose, its conversion to fine products or fuels has remained a romantic and popular notion; however, the heterogeneous and recalcitrant nature of cellulosic waste presents a major obstacle for conventional conversion processes. One paradigm for the conversion of biomass to products in nature relies on a multienzyme complex, the cellulosome. Microbes that produce cellulosomes convert lignocelluose to microbial cell mass and products (e.g. ethanol) simultaneously. The combination of designer cellulosomes with novel production concepts could in the future provide the breakthroughs necessary for economical conversion of cellulosic biomass to biofuels.
Bayer, Edward A., et al. "Potential of Cellulases and Cellulosomes for Cellulosic Waste Management." Current Opinion in Biotechnology, vol. 18, no. 2007, Dec. 2006. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copbio.2007.04.004
Bayer, Edward A., Lamed, Raphael, & Himmel, Michael E. (2006). Potential of Cellulases and Cellulosomes for Cellulosic Waste Management. Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 18(2007). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copbio.2007.04.004
Bayer, Edward A., Lamed, Raphael, and Himmel, Michael E., "Potential of Cellulases and Cellulosomes for Cellulosic Waste Management," Current Opinion in Biotechnology 18, no. 2007 (2006), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copbio.2007.04.004
@article{osti_915668,
author = {Bayer, Edward A. and Lamed, Raphael and Himmel, Michael E.},
title = {Potential of Cellulases and Cellulosomes for Cellulosic Waste Management},
annote = {Lignocellulose is the most abundant plant cell wall component of the biosphere and the most voluminous waste produced by our society. Fortunately, it is not toxic or directly harmful, but our major waste disposal facilities - the landfills - are rapidly filling up with few realistic alternatives. Because cellulose is pure glucose, its conversion to fine products or fuels has remained a romantic and popular notion; however, the heterogeneous and recalcitrant nature of cellulosic waste presents a major obstacle for conventional conversion processes. One paradigm for the conversion of biomass to products in nature relies on a multienzyme complex, the cellulosome. Microbes that produce cellulosomes convert lignocelluose to microbial cell mass and products (e.g. ethanol) simultaneously. The combination of designer cellulosomes with novel production concepts could in the future provide the breakthroughs necessary for economical conversion of cellulosic biomass to biofuels.},
doi = {10.1016/j.copbio.2007.04.004},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/915668},
journal = {Current Opinion in Biotechnology},
number = {2007},
volume = {18},
place = {United States},
year = {2006},
month = {12}}