Based on the knowledge that some fungi produce compounds known as hydrocarbons to protect themselves from bacteria, researchers from Washington State University, in the United States, and Aalborg University, in Denmark, have developed a method by which a strain of Aspergillus carbonarius, a filamentous fungus, can turn lignocellulosic biomass into a hydrocarbon similar to jet fuel. The enzymes secreted by this fungus, which is found on decomposing leaves and fruit, transformed the biomass into fuel without undergoing any industrial chemical processes. In the experiment headed by Birgitte Ahring and published in the April issue of the journal Fungal Biology, oatmeal was found to be the type of biomass that yielded the highest efficiency in hydrocarbon production. The researchers are now turning to genetic engineering in an effort to improve the fuel-producing fungal strains.
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