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Chemicals and Bioproducts from Biomass

Recently, Biotechnology for Biofuels took the decision to widen its scope to also include articles on the biological production of chemicals and bioproducts derived from biomass and CO2. Whereas a large proportion of the articles in Biotechnology for Biofuels still deal with the pretreatment, hydrolysis and bioconversion of lignocellulosic biomass to ethanol, the journal also has published a number of interesting articles related to bio-based chemicals and other bioproducts. This retrospective thematic issue assembles recent articles since 2015 to highlight these areas of research.

Edited by James du Preez

  2. Glycolic acid (GA) is a two-carbon hydroxyacid with applications in the cosmetic, textile, and medical industry. Microbial GA production from all sugars can be achieved by engineering the natural glyoxylate sh...

    Authors: Ceren Alkim, Debora Trichez, Yvan Cam, Lucie Spina, Jean Marie François and Thomas Walther
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:201
    Content type: Research Published on:

  4. To develop pathways for advanced biofuel production, and to understand the impact of host metabolism and environmental conditions on heterologous pathway engineering for economic advanced biofuels production f...

    Authors: Shihui Yang, Ali Mohagheghi, Mary Ann Franden, Yat-Chen Chou, Xiaowen Chen, Nancy Dowe, Michael E. Himmel and Min Zhang
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:189
    Content type: Research Published on:

  5. Increasing interest of non-conventional yeasts has been observed for many years due to their biochemical characteristics and potential applications. Well-studied, oleaginous yeast Y. lipolytica is an attractive h...

    Authors: Aleksandra M. Mirończuk, Dorota A. Rzechonek, Anna Biegalska, Magdalena Rakicka and Adam Dobrowolski
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:180
    Content type: Research Published on:

  6. Integrating waste management with fuels and chemical production is considered to address the food waste problem and oil crisis. Approximately, 600 million tonnes crude glycerol is produced from the biodiesel i...

    Authors: Cuijuan Gao, Xiaofeng Yang, Huaimin Wang, Cristina Perez Rivero, Chong Li, Zhiyong Cui, Qingsheng Qi and Carol Sze Ki Lin
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:179
    Content type: Research Published on:

  7. Glycerol, a byproduct of biodiesel, has become a readily available and inexpensive carbon source for the production of high-value products. However, the main drawback of glycerol utilization is the low consump...

    Authors: Ruilian Yao, Dewang Xiong, Hongbo Hu, Masataka Wakayama, Wenjuan Yu, Xuehong Zhang and Kazuyuki Shimizu
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:175
    Content type: Research Published on:

  8. Photosynthetic organisms can be used for renewable and sustainable production of fuels and high-value compounds from natural resources. Costs for design and operation of large-scale algae cultivation systems c...

    Authors: Robert J. Flassig, Melanie Fachet, Kai Höffner, Paul I. Barton and Kai Sundmacher
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:165
    Content type: Research Published on:

  9. Biohythane is a new and high-value transportation fuel present as a mixture of biomethane and biohydrogen. It has been produced from different organic matters using anaerobic digestion. Bioenergy can be recove...

    Authors: Qian Liu, Zhiyong Jason Ren, Cong Huang, Bingfeng Liu, Nanqi Ren and Defeng Xing
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:162
    Content type: Research Published on:

  10. In order to establish a cost-efficient biodiesel biorefinery, valorization of its main by-product, crude glycerol, is imperative. Recently, Ustilago trichophora TZ1 was found to efficiently produce malic acid fro...

    Authors: Thiemo Zambanini, Wiebke Kleineberg, Eda Sarikaya, Joerg M. Buescher, Guido Meurer, Nick Wierckx and Lars M. Blank
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:135
    Content type: Research Published on:

  11. Poly-γ-glutamic acid (γ-PGA) is a naturally occurring biopolymer made from repeating units of l-glutamic acid, d-glutamic acid, or both. Since some bacteria are capable of vigorous γ-PGA biosynthesis from renewab...

    Authors: Zhiting Luo, Yuan Guo, Jidong Liu, Hua Qiu, Mouming Zhao, Wei Zou and Shubo Li
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:134
    Content type: Review Published on:

  12. C5–C8 medium-chain carboxylic acids are valuable chemicals as the precursors of various chemicals and transport fuels. However, only a few strict anaerobes have been discovered to produce them and their produc...

    Authors: Byoung Seung Jeon, Okkyoung Choi, Youngsoon Um and Byoung-In Sang
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:129
    Content type: Research Published on:

  13. 2,3-Butanediol (2,3-BD) can be used as a liquid fuel additive to replace petroleum oil, and as an important platform chemical in the pharmaceutical and plastic industries. Microbial production of 2,3-BD by Bacill...

    Authors: Yimin Qiu, Jinyan Zhang, Lu Li, Zhiyou Wen, Christopher T. Nomura, Shuilin Wu and Shouwen Chen
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:117
    Content type: Research Published on:

  14. Cyanobacteria are phototrophic prokaryotes that convert inorganic carbon as CO2 into organic compounds at the expense of light energy. They need only inorganic nutrients and can be cultivated to high densities us...

    Authors: Nadin Pade, Sabrina Erdmann, Heike Enke, Frederik Dethloff, Ulf Dühring, Jens Georg, Juliane Wambutt, Joachim Kopka, Wolfgang R. Hess, Ralf Zimmermann, Dan Kramer and Martin Hagemann
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:89
    Content type: Research Published on:

  15. Synthesis gas, a mixture of CO, H2, and CO2, is a promising renewable feedstock for bio-based production of organic chemicals. Production of medium-chain fatty acids can be performed via chain elongation, utilizi...

    Authors: Martijn Diender, Alfons J. M. Stams and Diana Z. Sousa
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:82
    Content type: Research Published on:

  16. Microbes have been extensively explored for production of environment-friendly fuels and chemicals. The microbial fermentation pathways leading to these commodities usually involve many redox reactions. This m...

    Authors: Mukesh Saini, Si-Yu Li, Ze Win Wang, Chung-Jen Chiang and Yun-Peng Chao
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:69
    Content type: Research Published on:

  17. The large surplus of crude glycerol, as main low-value waste stream in biodiesel production, has led to the investigation of new possibilities for the production of value-added chemicals from this feedstock. N...

    Authors: Thiemo Zambanini, Eda Sarikaya, Wiebke Kleineberg, Joerg M. Buescher, Guido Meurer, Nick Wierckx and Lars M. Blank
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:67
    Content type: Research Published on:

  18. Geraniol is an acyclic monoterpene alcohol, which exhibits good prospect as a gasoline alternative. Geraniol is naturally encountered in plants at low concentrations and an attractive target for microbial engi...

    Authors: Wei Liu, Xin Xu, Rubing Zhang, Tao Cheng, Yujin Cao, Xiaoxiao Li, Jiantao Guo, Huizhou Liu and Mo Xian
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:58
    Content type: Research Published on:

    The Erratum to this article has been published in Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:131

  21. Biologically produced alkanes can be used as ‘drop in’ to existing transportation infrastructure as alkanes are important components of gasoline and jet fuels. Despite the reported microbial production of alka...

    Authors: Hua Ling, Nina Kurniasih Pratomo Juwono, Wei Suong Teo, Ruirui Liu, Susanna Su Jan Leong and Matthew Wook Chang
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:231
    Content type: Research Published on:

  22. A wide range of value-added by-products can be potentially produced from waste activated sludge (WAS) through anaerobic fermentation, among which short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are versatile green chemicals,...

    Authors: Zechong Guo, Aijuan Zhou, Chunxue Yang, Bin Liang, Thangavel Sangeetha, Zhangwei He, Ling Wang, Weiwei Cai, Aijie Wang and Wenzong Liu
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:192
    Content type: Research Published on:

    The Erratum to this article has been published in Biotechnology for Biofuels 2016 9:65

  23. Acetic acid is routinely generated during lignocelluloses degradation, syngas fermentation, dark hydrogen fermentation and other anaerobic bioprocesses. Acetate stream is commonly regarded as a by-product and ...

    Authors: Zhiwei Gong, Hongwei Shen, Wengting Zhou, Yandan Wang, Xiaobing Yang and Zongbao K. Zhao
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:189
    Content type: Research Published on:

  24. Bio-manufacturing of high-value chemicals in parallel to renewable biofuels has the potential to dramatically improve the overall economic landscape of integrated lignocellulosic biorefineries. However, this w...

    Authors: Michael F. A. Bradfield, Ali Mohagheghi, Davinia Salvachúa, Holly Smith, Brenna A. Black, Nancy Dowe, Gregg T. Beckham and Willie Nicol
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:181
    Content type: Research Published on:

  25. Numerous strategies have evolved recently for the generation of genetically modified or synthetic microalgae and cyanobacteria designed for production of ethanol, biodiesel and other fuels. In spite of their o...

    Authors: Ana F. Miranda, Mohamed Taha, Digby Wrede, Paul Morrison, Andrew S. Ball, Trevor Stevenson and Aidyn Mouradov
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:179
    Content type: Research Published on:

  26. Biodiesel is a mixture of fatty acid short-chain alkyl esters of different fatty acid carbon chain lengths. However, while fatty acid methyl or ethyl esters are useful biodiesel produced commercially, fatty ac...

    Authors: Wei Suong Teo, Hua Ling, Ai-Qun Yu and Matthew Wook Chang
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:177
    Content type: Research Published on:

  27. 3-Hydroxypropionic acid (3-HP) is an important platform chemical that boasts a variety of industrial applications. Gene expression systems inducible by 3-HP, if available, are of great utility for optimization...

    Authors: Shengfang Zhou, Satish Kumar Ainala, Eunhee Seol, Trinh Thi Nguyen and Sunghoon Park
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:169
    Content type: Research Published on:

  28. 2,3-Butanediol (2,3-BDO) is a promising bio-based chemical because of its wide industrial applications. Previous studies on microbial production of 2,3-BDO has focused on sugar fermentation. Alternatively, bio...

    Authors: Sukhyeong Cho, Taeyeon Kim, Han Min Woo, Yunje Kim, Jinwon Lee and Youngsoon Um
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:146
    Content type: Research Published on:

  30. Biogenic hydrocarbons (biohydrocarbons) are broadly accepted to be the ideal ‘drop-in’ biofuel alternative to petroleum-based fuels due to their highly similar chemical composition and physical characteristics...

    Authors: Jinyong Yan, Yi Liu, Cong Wang, Bingnan Han and Shengying Li
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:34
    Content type: Research article Published on:

  31. Glycerol generated during renewable fuel production processes is potentially an attractive substrate for the production of value-added materials by fermentation. An engineered strain MITXM-61 of the oleaginous...

    Authors: Kazuhiko Kurosawa, Andreas Radek, Jens K Plassmeier and Anthony J Sinskey
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:31
    Content type: Research article Published on:

  32. Photoautotrophic microalgae are a promising avenue for sustained biodiesel production, but are compromised by low yields of biomass and lipids at present. We are developing a chemical approach to improve micro...

    Authors: Ali Parsaeimehr, Zhilan Sun, Xiao Dou and Yi-Feng Chen
    Citation: Biotechnology for Biofuels 2015 8:11
    Content type: Research article Published on: