Rare Fungus Discovered that Converts Plant Cellulose to Diesel Fuel

http://www.naturalnews.com/025747.html

Saturday, February 28, 2009 by: David Gutierrez, staff writer


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(NaturalNews) Researchers from Montana State 
University, Yale University and the Center for 
Lab Services in Pasco, Washington, have 
discovered a fungus that naturally synthesizes 
diesel compounds, according to a paper published in the journal Microbiology.

"These are the first organisms that have been 
found that make many of the ingredients of 
diesel," researcher Professor Gary Strobel said. "This is a major discovery."

The fungus, Gliocladium roseum, was discovered 
living inside a type of tree known as an ulmo, in 
the rainforests of Patagonia in South America.

"We were trying to discover totally novel fungi 
in this tree by exposing its tissues to the 
volatile antibiotics of the 
<http://www.naturalnews.com/fungus.html>fungus 
Muscodor albus," Strobel said. "Quite 
unexpectedly, G. roseum grew in the presence of 
these gases when almost all other fungi were 
killed. It was also making volatile antibiotics."

Strobel regularly travels around the world, 
searching for microbes or plant compounds that 
might prove useful to humans. In 1993, he 
discovered a fungus that naturally produces the 
cancer drug taxol. In this case, however, Strobel 
found not just an antibiotic, but a potential fuel source.

"When we examined the gas composition of G. 
roseum, we were totally surprised to learn that 
it was making a plethora of hydrocarbons and hydrocarbon derivatives," he said.

With petroleum supplies dwindling, researchers 
are increasingly interested in biological sources 
of fuels such as 
<http://www.naturalnews.com/ethanol.html>ethanol. 
G. roseum may provide crucial in making many 
biofuel sources more realistic, due to its unique 
ability to produce diesel compounds directly from 
cellulose, rather than sugar alone.

Typically, the cellulose starches in biofuel 
stock must first be converted into sugar before its fermentation into ethanol.

"This is the only organism that has ever been 
shown to produce such an important combination of 
fuel substances," Strobel said. "The fungus can 
even make these diesel compounds from cellulose, 
which would make it a better source of biofuel 
than anything we use at the moment."

The next step, the researchers said, is to see if 
the gases that the fungus produces can be turned into liquid fuel.

Sources for this story include: 
<http://www.ens-newswire.com>www.ens-newswire.com

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