- Number 301 |
- December 7, 2009
Popping the cork on biofuel agriculture
Seeds deficient in HHT (right)
are more permeable to a red
dye than normal plant seeds (left).
Scientists at DOE’s Brookhaven Lab have identified a novel enzyme responsible for the formation of suberin—the woody, waxy, cell-wall substance found in cork. While effective at keeping wine inside a bottle, suberin’s most important function in plants is to control water and nutrient transport and keep pathogens out. Adjusting the permeability of plant tissues by genetically manipulating the expression of this enzyme could lead to easier agricultural production of crops used for biofuels. In this research, scientists analyzed a strain of plants that was genetically modified to disrupt the expression of a gene that codes for an enzyme known as HHT. Chemical analysis showed that “knocking out” the HHT gene led to a deficiency of suberin, indicating that HHT is the enzyme responsible for biosynthesis of the polymer. The team also demonstrated that the HHT-deficient plants were much more permeable to salt than their wild-type counterparts. Harnessing the mechanism for suberin production might therefore help scientists create crop breeds tailored to thrive in specific—even harsh—environments, an important milestone on the road toward economically efficient biofuel production.r
[Kendra Snyder, 631.344.8191,
ksnyder@bnl.gov]
