Tag Archive for: Swedish Research Council

A so-called photobioreactor with microalgal content, in the laboratories of Christiane Funk and Martin Plöhn, both Bio4Energy. Photo by courtesy of Plöhn and Funk.

Researchers to Map Composition of Green Algae, Pave Way for Biotechnology Breakthroughs

Bio4Energy’s research team dedicated to creating applications from green algae have won funds to investigate the composition of cell walls in microalgae. These are microscopic algae that are not visible to the unaided eye, used to produce algal biomass for use in biotechnology applications.

Christiane Funk and students at Umeå University, Sweden hope to develop much needed information on the mechanisms that govern buildup and breakdown of the cell wall in these Chlorophyta algae, with the aim of allowing researchers worldwide more easily to design biotechnology applications that are cost and energy efficient.

Last week, national funder Swedish Research Council – VR announced its decision to support a four-year project.

The researchers aim to find out which enzymes are involved in making the cell wall mouldable and the way in which this plasticity enables – or could enable – the green algae to cope with environmental stressors. They also aim to map the transport of carbon, which is known to fluctuate, inside the cell.

With this knowledge in hand, they want to look into ways to manipulate the cell wall for better outcomes in the design of biotechnology applications.

“This proposal aims to address a critical gap in research, by investigating the biosynthesis and modification of the cell wall of Chlorophyta microalgae. We will gain insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the microalgal cell wall, its plasticity and perception of the environment”.

“Despite their promise as a sustainable feedstock for biotechnological applications, the use of microalgae has been hindered by high monetary and energy costs associated with the processing steps that follow cultivation, particularly the harvesting of algal biomass and extraction of valuable compounds”, Funk and colleagues wrote in their project application;

“This proposal aims to address this critical gap in research, by investigating the biosynthesis and modification of the cell wall of Chlorophyta microalgae. We will gain insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the microalgal cell wall, its plasticity and perception of the environment”.

Over the last decade, Bio4Energy’s research teams studying microalgae have worked diligently to lay a foundation for production, scale up and demonstration of algal biomass for use in consumer products and as an agent in water purification in industrial facilities.

The two teams focus on green and blue-green microalgae, respectively. Francesco Gentili and colleagues, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, run development facilities in collaboration with regional energy utility Umeå Energi, at Dåva just off Umeå, in northern Sweden.

Project title: Not Just Another Brick in the Wall – Advancing Microalgal Biotechnology through Cell Wall Research

Project leader: Christiane Funk, Bio4Energy Biopolymers and Biochemical Conversion Technologies – Affiliation with Umeå University

Duration: 2025 – 2028

Related projects

Revitalising forest waste into microalgal and bacterial cellulose membranes with tailored properties for sustainable food packaging, Green Tech – Bio4Energy

Circular and sustainable production of bioplastics with the help of photosynthetic microorganisms – Proof of concept – Bio4Energy

Waste2Plastic – Production of bioplastic from algal biomass generated from wastewater – Bio4Energy

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New Monies for Research to Bio4Energy Scientists from Swedish National Funders

A number of Bio4Energy research leaders have won funds in this year’s round of grants from the prestigious Swedish Research Council VR.

VR made its announcement this month, unveiling multi-million Swedish kronor grants to fund scientific research projects in its category for Natural and Engineering Sciences.

The projects and their participants are listed, as follows.

  • 2ndUpChance: A second chance for Upcycling of Microplastics, Paul Christakopoulos, Luleå University of Technology – Bio4Energy Biopolymers and Biochemical Conversion. LTU co-applicants are Kerstin Ramser, Suman Bajracharya, Alok Kumar Patel, Leonidas Matsakas and Ulrika Rova.
  • To Grow or to Defend? Deciphering defence—growth strategies in pine and spruce under local light conditions in Sweden, Rosario García-Gil, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences – Bio4Energy Forest-based Feedstocks. Co-applicants are Malin Elfstrand and Sonali Sachin Ranade, both SLU.
  • Fundamental Understanding of Diffusion in Zeolites, Jonas Hedlund, Luleå University of Technology – Bio4Energy Catalysis and Separation. Co-applicants are Liang Yu, LTU and Igor Zozoulenko, Linköping University.
  • Molecular Control of Carbon Storage in Trees, Totte Nittylä, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences – Bio4Energy Forest-based Feedstocks
  • Heat and Mass Transfer of Reactive Porous Particles, Kentaro Umeki, Luleå University of Technology – Bio4Energy Thermochemical Conversion. Co-applicant Nils Erland Haugen has a double affiliation to LTU and to SINTEF Energy, respectively.
  • Evolution of Characteristics in Layers of Bed Particles: For next generation of thermal conversion processes for biomass in fluidised beds, Marcus Öhman, Luleå University of Technology – Bio4Energy Thermochemical Conversion. LTU co-applicant is Fredrik Forsberg.
  • Decoding of the Role of Lignin Chemistry for Plant Growth, Development and Resistance to Drought, Edouard Pesquet, Stockholm University – Bio4Energy Forest-based Feedstocks. Co-applicant is Tanja Slotte, SU.

The latter recipient also scored a multiannual grant for his research proposal to Formas Research Council, which announced the outcome of its Annual Open Call around the same time.

3DWOOD—Printable Wood as an Alternative to Plastic: A composite wood material with new characteristics made from stem cell cultures and glued together with natural lignin, Edouard Pesquet, Stockholm University – Bio4Energy Forest-based Feedstocks. Co-applicant is Aji Mathew, SU.

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Plants Adapt their Lignin Using Chemical ‘Encoding’ Enzymes, New Report Suggests – Bio4Energy

Innovation Award for R&D on Biogas Separation Technology to Bio4Energy Researcher – Bio4Energy

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Large Project on Integration of UN SDGs in Forest Management to Target Genetic Tree Breeding – Bio4Energy

Quinoa Project Classifies New Building Block for Biorefinery

A long-running research project designed to create the conditions for making renewable fuels, chemicals and pesticides from residues of the agricultural crop quinoa; grown in extreme environments; has hit a major milestone.

Bio4Energy’s long-running ‘Quinoa Project’, started in 2017 by scientists in Sweden and Bolivia, not only has expanded to a multi-partner effort, but also has classified and provided a detailed map of characteristics of a previously unknown bacterium that can be at the base of high value-added biorefinery products.

This bacterium lives on the Andean Altiplano, or high-altitude plateau, of the great mountain range straddling Bolivia and a number of other South American countries. To protect itself from the intense sunlight and high salt concentration of its environment, it produces a type of polymer (a base component of many living organisms), which the scientists believe can be at the base of a number of high value-added biorefinery applications. It is this “exopolysaccharide” polymer that can become products for everyday use down the line.

“We believe that this type of polymer will be useful for producing products of high market value. We can think about applications such as fine chemicals, medical materials and food additives”, said Carlos Martín Medina, Umeå University; who shares the project leadership with Cristhian Carrasco of the Bolivian Universidad Mayor de San Andrés.

This means that scientists across the world who have the competence and access to infrastructure, with the classification of this bacterium, Bacillus atrophaeus, have the possibility to use the new research results for making bio-based applications from crops grown in extreme environments.

In Bolivia and other South American countries, a good part of the population are farmers who rely on the production of the protein-rich staple crop quinoa for subsistence.

One the one hand, demand for this health food from the rest of the world has dwindled as importers such as the U.S.A. have turned to growing the crop domestically. On the other, important negative environmental consequences have sprung from the quinoa production, including depleted and contaminated soils, due to monoculture and use of fossil resource-based fertilizers, as well as a problematic amount of agricultural waste.

Several of the governments of South America see great promise in biorefinery. This means the production of fuels, chemicals and materials; using renewable starting materials such as organic waste, instead of fossil resources such as oil or gas.

However, methods and tools for converting agricultural residue, such as quinoa stalks, must be invented. Given the harsh environment of the high Altiplano—a salt flat situated at an altitude of 3000 – 4500 metre above sea level—the size of the task is great.

In a next step, researchers at Umeå University, Sweden will investigate which industries may benefit most from the present discovery. In other words, use applications will be identified.

The present project is a collaboration between scientists at Umeå University, Bolivian Universidad Mayor de San Andrés of Bolivia and consultant researchers at the RISE Research Institutes of Sweden.

The overall Quinoa Project enjoys backing from the Swedish Research Council, Bio4Energy and the Swedish International Development Agency.

Scientific article

The collaboration partners have described the identification, isolation and characterisation of the new bacterial strain in the following scientific article; Chambi D, Lundqvist J, Nygren E, Romero-Soto L, Marin K, Gorzsás A, Hedenström M, Carlborg M, Broström M, Sundman O, Carrasco C, Jönsson LJ, Martín C. 2022. Production of Exopolysaccharides by Cultivation of Halotolerant Bacillus atrophaeus BU4 in Glucose- and Xylose-Based Synthetic Media and in Hydrolysates of Quinoa StalksFermentation 8(2):79.