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Full-Text Articles in Biotechnology

Evaluation Of Hall’S Panicgrass (Panicum Hallii Vasey) As A Model System For Genetic Modification Of Recalcitrance In Switchgrass (Panicum Virgatum (L.)), Joshua Nathaniel Grant May 2017

Evaluation Of Hall’S Panicgrass (Panicum Hallii Vasey) As A Model System For Genetic Modification Of Recalcitrance In Switchgrass (Panicum Virgatum (L.)), Joshua Nathaniel Grant

Masters Theses

While switchgrass (Panicum virgatum (L.)) has long been recognized as a viable bioenergy feedstock, it and other plants have cell walls with recalcitrance to processing. Recalcitrance is recognized as a major barrier to broad adoption of switchgrass and other feedstocks for cellulosic bioenergy. In an effort to reduce recalcitrance, transgenic plants have been generated with altered cell wall phenotypes such as reduced lignin. Unfortunately, stable transformation of switchgrass and other C4 grasses is time intensive, costly, and genetic analysis is further complicated by polyploid genomic structures. Unlike switchgrass, which can be tetraploid to octoploid, a closely related species, Hall’s …


Switchgrass Extractives Have Potential As A Value-Added Antimicrobial Against Plant Pathogens And Foodborne Pathogens, Alexander Ian Bruce Dec 2016

Switchgrass Extractives Have Potential As A Value-Added Antimicrobial Against Plant Pathogens And Foodborne Pathogens, Alexander Ian Bruce

Masters Theses

Panicum virgatum (switchgrass), a perennial grass native to North America, is a leading biomass feedstock candidate for the manufacture of cellulosic ethanol. Switchgrass is considered a viable option for biofuel production due to its cheap production cost and ability to grow on marginal land. Biofuel derived from switchgrass has been shown to be very energy efficient, producing 540% more renewable energy versus nonrenewable energy expended. Switchgrass-derived biofuel is also estimated to have greenhouse gas emissions that are 94% lower than emissions from gasoline (Schmer et al 2008). Biofuels are created through biochemical processes that utilize various enzymes and microorganisms for …


Rnai Mediated Silencing Of Cell Wall Invertase Inhibitors To Increase Sucrose Allocation To Sink Tissues In Transgenic Camelina Sativa Engineered With A Carbon Concentrating Mechanism, Joshua Zuber Jul 2015

Rnai Mediated Silencing Of Cell Wall Invertase Inhibitors To Increase Sucrose Allocation To Sink Tissues In Transgenic Camelina Sativa Engineered With A Carbon Concentrating Mechanism, Joshua Zuber

Masters Theses

Plant invertases are a class of proteins that have enzymatic function in cleaving sucrose to fructose and glucose. Cell wall invertase, located on the exterior of the cell wall of plant cells, plays a key role in the unloading of sucrose from the apoplast to the sink tissues. Cell wall invertase interacts with an inhibitor, cell wall invertase inhibitor, post-transcriptionally to regulate its activity. The inhibitor is constitutively expressed in pollen development, early developing seeds, and senescing leaves: indicative of sucrose allocation being a limiting factor at these stages of development. We introduced algal bicarbonate transporters LCIA/CCP1 to Camelina sativa …


Value-Added Lignin Based Carbon Fiber From Organosolv Fractionation Of Poplar And Switchgrass, Andreas Attwenger May 2014

Value-Added Lignin Based Carbon Fiber From Organosolv Fractionation Of Poplar And Switchgrass, Andreas Attwenger

Masters Theses

Carbon fibers have unique properties that include high strength, low density and excellent chemical and thermal resistance. However, they have a low level of utilization because of their high price; typically around $30/kg for an entry level polyacrylonitrile (PAN) based carbon fiber. Low-cost carbon fibers derived from lignin are currently being investigated at the University of Tennessee, because using lignin as a precursor could significantly reduce production costs. Lignins obtained from the pulp and paper and the emerging biofuel industries have the potential to be used for carbon fiber production, however, they are typically unsuitable because of the high levels …


Intellectual Property And Policy Issues In Biotechnology, Amy Iver Yancey Aug 2011

Intellectual Property And Policy Issues In Biotechnology, Amy Iver Yancey

Masters Theses

Intellectual property, particularly patents, plays a major role in innovation and discovery in biotechnology. Likewise, since the passage of the Bayh-Dole Act in 1981, patents have become an increasingly important factor in U.S. university-driven basic research, especially in the life sciences where patented technologies have transformed agriculture. Specifically, this paper looks at the potential impacts of these trends on university driven research, the university researcher, the pharmaceutical industry, and the farm sector with an emphasis on recent and pending court cases and legislation. This paper examines policy and adoptions issues in biotechnology and biomedicine in depth and touches on important …