Fungus Could Cause an American Revolution
by Sydni
A simple fungus, that quickly deteriorated the fibers in WWII tents and uniforms, has now been discovered to be very efficient and cost effective in the creation of ethanol, a fuel alternative to gasoline. Ethanol is created from fermented simple sugars that are found in natural substances such as corn and switchgrass. Recently ethanol has been criticized by many to be an expensive and inefficient fuel alternative. The fungus, Tricoderma reesei, on an industrial scale, could revolutionize the process of producing ethanol.
T. reesei breaks down human-indigestible planet fibers through enzymes to create monosaccharide, the simplest sugar form, which it uses as food. When researchers tried to figure out why it was so efficient at processing plant cells, they discovered a way it could help revolutionize the ethanol production process. The discovery stemmed from mapping the genome of T. reesei. They found, while there were large quantities of enzymes, there were fewer variations in the types of enzymes produced. Scientists concluded that the system must be extremely efficient in releasing the proteins which create simple sugar plant fibers.
By adding purified T. reesei enzymes to a mixture of cellulose pulp and other materials, sugar is produced, which can then, with yeast, be fermented into ethanol. “The sequencing of the Trichoderma reesei genome is a major step towards using renewable feedstocks for the production of fuels and chemicals,” said Joel Cherry, director of research activities in second-generation biofuels for Novozymes, a collaborating institution in the study.
“The information contained in its genome will allow us to better understand how this organism degrades cellulose so efficiently and to understand how it produces the required enzymes so prodigiously. Using this information, it may be possible to improve both of these properties, decreasing the cost of converting cellulosic biomass to fuels and chemicals.”
This fungus can revolutionize the way America produces an earth-friendly fuel alternative, more efficiently and more cost effectively than gasoline.
Do you think it important to find alternative fuel sources for a better future? Do you think this fungus could be one step toward creating an effective and efficient alternative to gasoline? Why?
sildenafil uk only purchase oxycontin from online pharmacies soloft paxil prosac depression anxiety chemical sildenafil phentermine lowest prices phentermin buy phentermine cod trusted pharmacy catalog seroquel for treating depression fermenting ephedra soma online medicine without prescription soma soma san diego interpol herbal phentermine forum cheap phentermine free sh diet prednisone diet phentermine pills drug phentermine oxycontin for pain relief order cheap cost tadalafil online buy phentermine pills without doctor herbal phentermine resources relenza market share gsk phentermine 37 5 order medication beyond prozac international premier pharmacy effects of paxil sildenafil coronary sertraline online buy soma t shirts interaction between xanax and prozac buy tadalafil pay with check online cod mg phentermine mg phentermine basics buy u s a tadalafil online effect prozac side generic prozac cheap 2737 amerimedrx flonase renova viarga phentermine 30 mg buy cod phentermine phentermine diet buy phentermine sildenafil tablet 100 picture phentermine 37,5 paxil morning alcohol night ritalin for weight loss line pharmacy propecia discount pharmacy paxil what is the pill soma 58 electric jolts prozac paxil to prozac sertraline weight loss negative affects of prozac fluoxetine prozac prozac weekly cheapest soma online no prescription generic fast overnight phentermine overnight delivery for phentermine phentermine 37.5mg $79 online prescription paroxetine sildenafil viagra and the heart effects of mixing risperdal with zoloft phentermine hcl 37 mg tablets ortho pharmaceuticals renova soma muscle relaxor buy soma carisoprodol paxil class action suite taking phentermine with antidepressants lowest price phentermine without perscription weight loss after prednisone side effects soma car finance offers pcp phentermine hcl bulk 100 powder cheap online prozac does prednisone cause hair loss sildenafil hemodynamics super 1 buy rohypnol without prescription cheap paroxetine buy online paxil and alcohol's effects wellbutrin clinical comparison to prozac soma pill information getting provigil without a prescription ionamin phentermine resin complex drug 3.37 30 mg phentermine toxic levels of prozac 160 mg of prozac eon lab liability phentermine product headaches and prozac nexium verses prilosec adipex loss phentermine weight acne from propecia drugs alcohol and steroids prednisone apnea phentermine ship uk who soma club san diego purchase prozac prednisone dosage canine arthritis diabetes tadalafil 30 mg phentermine hcl phentermine uk shipping online where to purchase phentermine online kamagra sildenafil site viagra order tadalafil 200 online car pcp finance prednisone for hair growth order paxil cr online synthroid and antidepressant metabolism prevacid brand pharmacy canadian hydrocodone licensed prescription meds prednisone india buying soma on-line low cost propecia diet no phentermine pill prescription prescription and propecia sertraline hcl generic zoloft wellbutrin xl and paxil phentermine no rx overnight pimozide and prozac 5 indian sildenafil phentermine and diet phentermine us pharmacy no prescription phentermine online cheap diet pills does prozac help you lose weight buy phentermine lowest price limited amount order tadalafil 50 online buy cod diet phentermine pill phentermine using mastercard soma muscle relaxer made by softtabs money order online justice seekers prozac pcp addiction treatment man s health phentermine diet pill paxil cr not for sale finance soma 99 free phentermine shipping drug abuse of pcp drug interactions for prozac fastest sildenafil delivery alcohol interaction prozac sildenafil gastroparesis remeron augmented with ssri prozac will prozac affect my pregnancy potatoes not prozac hardcover glenmullen prozac backlash overcoming phentermine ephedrine prednisone deltasone no prescription accepted cod phentermine 2004 relenza market share dropped soma online cheap free shipping adipex diet discount phentermine pill softtabs with no prescription online phentermine adipex overnight buying soma without a prescription accutane guild prempro legal drug allergy to generic ritalin depression caused by prozac order prilosec online from dreampharmaceuticals sertraline versus zoloft herbal phentermine 32 phentermine brand name fastin buy tadalafil 60 online longterm effect of prozac overdose social anxiety relief paxil hairloss baldness propecia adipex ionamin online phentermine qoclick forum for prozac users generic propecia finasteride viagra propecia picture pill soma phentermine overnight delivery us licensed pharmacies low price tadalafil online brain trauma and prozac tadalafil online $114 coupons for paxil cr priscription phentermine 37.5mg current information 1 buy mg propecia paxil cr and 2006 annual sales meridia sibutramine and xenical orlistat diet prescription phentermine diabetes diet prescription 5 citrato de sildenafil depression phentermine order tadalafil from usa online accepts cod phentermine kathy willits prozac serotonin prozac sertraline night sweats 6 finasteride proscar propecia order softtabs with check online tadalafil success rate for erectile dysfunction online pharmacy retin paxil for menopause crying 6hair loss baldness propecia buy cheap ritalin buy phentermine cheap phentermine can usage of prevacid cause hairloss soma compound overdose symptoms soma 350mg 150 pills generic tadalafil message board order tadalafil 270 online nursing process prozac phentermine online cheap phentermine buy phentermine order us softtabs online phentermine hcl prescription diet phentermine side effects trusted pharmacy catalog prednisone medication which cat ate prozac fluoxetine paroxetine clomipramine sildenafil every 3 hours soft tablet tadalafil hci sertraline zoloft phentermine prices synthroid night sweats calm prozac ssri drug names zoltan prozac nexium prilocec prevacid purchase tadalafil compare pravachol to lipitor cholestrol drugs sildenafil cream discount buy prilosec online order softtabs 50 online synthroid dye allergy cheap diet phentermine pill can you take tylenol and prozac order plavix 75 mg soma district san francisco galleries cod pay soma dysfunction erectile prozac paxil paroxetine dosage premature ejaculatoin tadalafil medication cod phentermine no rx needed weight loss with phentermine phentermine weight loss shiped buy cheap phentermine in mo paxil cr drug sildenafil vega sleep soma sildenafil intravenous 1.0mg ml depression help seroquel seroquel and zoloft interaction global pharmacy phentermine sideaffects of prozac buy carisoprodol soma sildenafil medlineplus info on prozac 150 soma without prescription trazadone increase prozac effect prednisone for cat no prescription hydroxycut prozac interactions find buy tadalafil cialis at ebay overmedication with prozac 30mg phentermine from canada seroquel and zoloft interactions chemical structure of prozac effects soma taking prozac and lexapro combination soma records 1137 sale price zenegra how sildenafil works zoloft instead of prozac 5 sildenafil in 24 hours tappering off paxil to zoloft phentermine blue 30 mg premarin and female hair loss phentermine average weight loss ivf premarin wilmington finance paxil where can i buy cheap phentermine hair loss phentermine elavil and prozac depression from prednisone pcp treatment centers in nj no effect from prozac xenical prevacid aldara nasacort aq california home loan mortgage retin wellbutrin and prozac phentermine diet pill buy duramine paxil cr medicine wellbutrin pravachol actos alphagan trade name pioglitazone bosentan and sildenafil 7 proscar vs propecia filing income tax buy soma order propecia now prevacid over the counter marelna aura soma weight loss drug propecia sildenafil citrate process ingrediants cherry frui christina ricci prozac the anxiety community treatment medication paxil oxycontin rehab california phentermine accept cod phentermine caps 30 mg paxil pill pravachol nexium actos phentermine tamiflu prescription drug synthroid aura soma quintessence set buying phentermine using mastercard no rx phentermine 30mg 90 120 buy cheapest price tadalafil online soma on sale help with the prescription drug soma online tadalafil remeron insomnia taking prozac with wellbutrin natual remedies instead of taking prozac drug prednisone prescription buy cheap soma cod soma phone oklahoma purchase sertraline pharmacy bbc panorama prozac taking zoloft and paxil coupons prevacid nexium cheap 60mg prozac phentermine diet phentermine purchase phentermine purchase famotidine 20mg tablet pepcid co q-10 and prozac net doctor propecia online prednisone no prescription oxycontin's tylenol content paxil paxil cr school report pcp phoenix myth of soma server best prices phentermine online pharmacy optimum propecia
May 11th, 2008 at 3:58 pm
This is a great post! It is great to hear that we are finding other fuel alternatives! I do think that it is imporatnt to find fuel alternatives, becuase the gasoline prices are just too high, and gasoline is not good for the enviroment, because of the polution it causes! I do think that this fungus could be a step toward creating an effective and efficent alternative to gasoline, because by using the t reesi enzymes to create sugar which is then used to create ethnol is hopefully a cheaper and friendlier to the enviroment alternative to gasoline!
May 11th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
This is very cool. I had no idea that there was another substance that can provide us with an altenative to gasoline! Find an effective alternative to gasoline is key to havaing a better future for our plannet. The way we are using gasoline right now is stupid and irresponsable because we are using so much that we are ruining our plannet! If this keeps up than I dont even want to know what the consequences would be. I truely believe that this fungus coul be one small step toward creating an effective and efficient alternative to gasoline both environmentally and economically!
Here is a great site that I found on this topic! Great post Sydni!http://biopact.com/2007/03/scientists-discover-fungus-to-convert.html
May 11th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
Wow, thats really cool Sydni. I never thought of fungus as a savior to our fuel problems. Whenever I thought of fungus I thought of mushrooms or atheletes foot. As you think about it though there are many types of fungus that we use daily. Such as Bleu Cheese which we eat on salads or sandwiches or Yeast which is used to help bread rise. A household medicine called Penicillin is made from Fungi also.
I think it is important to find a new fuel source for the future because if we rely on fossil fuel for fuel for the rest of our lives our economy will fall not to mention our environment too. Yes, I think this is a step closer to saving our future. If we can create safer and more fuel efficient means of transportation we can save money and use that money towards repairing what we already destroyed will fossil fuels.
I found a website that talks about the uses of fungi and how we use them every day http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/f/fungi-37.html
May 11th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
That is amazing that a fungus can be the help we need to create an alternate fuel source. At this point in time I think it is very important that we find an alternative fuel source. I found a website that does list some cons to ethanol vs. gasoline. It said that it provides less miles to the gallon, current gas lines would have to be all redone, and some people say that is takes more energy to make the ethanol than the ethanol actually gives off. You can check out the site here…
http://www.autotrader.com/research/article/26040/the-good-the-bad-and-the-earth-friendly.jsp
All these cons could be sacrafices we have to make though. I think the fungus could be one step closer towards creating an effective and efficient alternative to gasoline. As the post said this fungus has helped make the ethanol more efficient and more cost efficient. With the cost efficiency the less miles to the gallon might not matter as much. I think with more research America could be one step closer to not only helping the environment but securing there will always be fuel.
May 11th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
I think it is important for find an alternative fuel source because we might not be able to get gasoline out of the Middle east forever. I think ethanol made by Tricoderma reesei is a step forward to creating an effective and efficient alternative to gasoline because the United sates can make it and we don’t have to rely on other countries for most of our fuel. If the Middle East would happen to cut off it fuel to us we would have an alternative source to our gasoline. Ethanol has a few advantages to gasoline. It is a renewable fuel made from plants. It is not a fossil-fuel: manufacturing it and burning it does not increase the greenhouse effect. It provides high octane at low cost as an alternative to harmful fuel additives.
Ethanol blends can be used in all petrol engines without modifications
Ethanol is biodegradable without harmful effects on the environment.
It significantly reduces harmful exhaust emissions. Ethanol’s high oxygen content reduces carbon monoxide levels more than any other oxygenate: by 25-30%, according to the US EPA. There are a few more advantages and you can check them out at this website: http://journeytoforever.org/ethanol.html#ethwhatis
May 11th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
This is a really good post! Good job sydni
I would never have expected a fungus to help out our big fuel problem. Like Andrew, whenever I think about a fungus I think about things like athelete’s foot, molded food, and bacteria. We really do rely on funguses for food and many other things. It is really important to be finding out a new fuel alternative. That is crutial to our planet. We need to find a new sourcebecause we rely on fossil fuels too much. This is really important for our future! Here’s another website I found about this topic.
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Science/2008/05/05/bad_fungus_may_be_good_biofuel_producer/6651/
May 12th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
This is amazing. That’s so cool that we have been able to control destructive force of Tricoderma reesi that once destroyed tents and uniforms of soldiers from WW2 and use it to create enviromentally friendly fuel. http://www.ethanolmarket.com/ is a cool site dedicated to ethonal news. On this site it talks about the prices of corn, wheat, and, such. This is important to know because this could determine whether ethonal will be useful or a good alternative than gas. This alternative may just be too expensive to use and may cause more economic issues for the U.S.
May 12th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Ethanol is a great alternative source to gasoline, but it also has its down side. Since Ethanol is corn-based, it can affects other things as well, like the feed to the cattle. This cause food prices to also go up. Feed to the cattle is more expensive and now so is milk, cheese, eggs, etc. You can read more about this at this web site I found:
http://media.www.psucollegio.com/media/storage/paper437/news/2008/04/24/FrontPage/High-Gas.Prices.Cause.Rise.In.Food.Costs-3347682.shtml
May 12th, 2008 at 10:24 pm
When I first read the title is was like huh?? When I think fungi i dont usualy think they are very powerful and furthurmore even start ad revolution. After reading this post it sure changed that thought.
I actually would love fungi (as odd as it might sound) if it helped lower gas prices and creat a better environment. Using t reesi enzymes to create sugar which is then used to create ethnol sounds like a much better choice than fuel which pollutes the air and contributes to the greenhouse effect.
Billy I also visited the really cool website about all the advantages of Ethanol and it really made me want to get a car just to use ethanol and help start the revolution.
Another alternative I found was using 100% straight vegetable oil as feul!
I found this really cool website giving all sorts of information and advantages about it http://www.plantdrive.com/html/learn_more.html
May 12th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
Great point billy! Wow I never would have thought that one day the earths cars may run on a fungus. That is pretty sweet. Right now I know everyone is willing to find a new solution for these outragous gas prices. This new fungus could be the next step right now the decrease or at least a help in the stopping of global warming. Cars alone will raise the global temperatures from 2.5 to 10.4 degrees by the end of this century. WOW that is outragous. We need to take steps to help with global warming and by useing the fungus we have then found a way to decrease that rate and cool the earth back down. I think that this amazing and we should really look into this for the sake of everyone and our planet. Here is a site that is really good.
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/globalwarming/2007-01-30-ipcc-report_x.htm
May 12th, 2008 at 10:51 pm
This is a shock to me. I always think of fungus as worthless. Now I know that it can be used to make ethanol, which would be a great fuel alternative. I think that it is very important and necessary to find alternative fuel sources. Gasoline is just so high these days, and we cannot rely on an unstable source such as the Middle East for out fuel. However, this process might be slow because of our economy’s dependency on oil. Exxon set an annual profit record of $39.5 billion dollars for 2007. Our economy would not look to goo without Exxon.
http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/01/news/companies/exxonmobil/index.htm
This fungus definitely moves us closer to having an efficient alternative to gasoline. This will now make ethanol an efficient and inexpensive fuel alternative. This will definitely help us to not have so much dependency on foreign oil. I found a really cool website that is devoted to advocating ethanol as a fuel alternative.
http://www.drivingethanol.org/default.aspx
May 13th, 2008 at 9:57 am
It is an important thing that engineers have been experimenting with new fuels. The fuel prices have gone soaring, and this has led to many other problems, putting third world countries in economic ruin. The raise of the price of fuel causes a raise of the price of exports because it takes more money to transport goods.
If this potential new fuel is successful, it will do wonders for the economies of all the countries of the world. Right now, we need change.
May 13th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
I was doing some research on ethanol and found that alot of people don’t lke ethanol bcause it raises prices on corn. Here are some more disadvantages of ethanol:
The main cause of environmental damage that production of ethanol causes comes from ethanol created from corn, Pimentel said. Another problem is that ethanol has a smaller energy density than gasoline. It takes about 1.5 times more ethanol than gasoline to travel the same distance. However, with new technologies and dedicated ethanol-engines, this is expected to drop to 1.25 times. Another problem is that ethanol burning may increase emission of certain types of pollutants. Like any combustion process, some of the ethanol fuel would come out the tailpipe unburned. This is not a major problem since ethanol emissions are relatively non-toxic. However, some of the ethanol will be only partially oxidized and emitted as acetylaldehyde, which reacts in air to eventually contribute to the formation of ozone. Current research is investigating means to reduce acetylaldehyde emissions by decreasing the engine warm-up period. Finally, ethanol production, like all processes, generates waste products that must be disposed. The waste product from ethanol production, called swill, can be used as a soil conditioner on land, but is extremely toxic to aquatic life.
Website: http://science.jrank.org/pages/2576/Ethanol-Disadvantages-ethanol-an-alternative-fuel.html
May 13th, 2008 at 7:46 pm
Wow! This is great to hear that we are finding alternative fuel sources to gasoline! It is understandable why people would not like the idea of ethanol because it was very costly to produce. But after this discovery I’m sure a lot of people’s views have changed! By using the T. reesi fungus, ethanol can be produced quickly and efficiently. In this fragile and desperate time on Earth, it is a neccesity that we find efficient fuel alternatives — and fast! Ethanol is certainly a possibility. We are already making great strides, with more fuel-efficient cars, but this will ultimately not solve the problem we are faced with, considering the growing number of cars on the road. Using alternatives like ethanol would truly be a revolution!
May 13th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
That is really something! It’s great to know that this fungus could lead to a better alternative fuel source. I do think that it is very important to find new fuel sources because the fossil fuels we have right now are terrible for the environment, not to mention we don’t have very much of it left. The fuel we have now is also way too expensive, and it looks like these prices are still going to continue to rise. I don’t know much about economy, but I’m pretty sure that when prices keep going up like this, everything has to collapse and fall apart sometime. Perhaps this fungus could help us find a new fuel and save ourselves from whatever consequences may come from these ridiculously high gas prices. What I don’t understand however, is that ethanol seems to be really great from what I’ve read, yet I don’t see it very often or hear about cars or pepole that use ethanol. If ethanol is so great for people and the environment, why don’t very many people use it?
May 13th, 2008 at 8:04 pm
Wow, this is amazing. If we can find a alternate sorce to fuel that is efficient than the future will be greatly benifited. It is very important to find an alternate fuel sorce because the earth does not have an infinate source of fossil fuels. We will run out. Besides, the by product of these fossil fuels create a vast amount of pollution. The only thing that is stopping us from switching over to the enviormentally friendly ethonol is the efficientness of its production. It takes a while to produce ethenol, but with this newly discovered fungus, we may have a better and faster way to create ethenol.
I honestly think the earth’s fossil fuel supply could run out in my lifetime. My dad says by the time I start driving that the gasoline costs will be around 5 dollars a gallon. If we can perfect ethenol production we would save money as well. So we could benifit the enviorment as well as save some extra cash.
May 13th, 2008 at 8:12 pm
Great post Sydni! I think that it’s amazing how we can turn something as simple yet so complex as a fungus into ethanol for gas. I think it is EXTREMELY important to find feul alternatives for our cars since the price of gas is not going to go back down, but keep going up. I think this fungus could help us tremendously in finding alternatives and earth friendly feul for our cars and vehicles. This website describes a simliar expirament performed by college students. Like Sydni said in her post, the fungus is needed to produce enzymes that break down plant matter into simple sugars and once the simple sugars are present, they are able to be fed to the yeast to get ethanol which is another earth friendly alternative to gas. This was very interesting and I hope that we can use this to keep the earth thriving in a healthy way!
May 13th, 2008 at 8:13 pm
http://www.jmu.edu/madisonscholar/Cellulose-digestion.shtml
May 13th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
This is a very good post. Many times i have heard about substances that can be created from food to run a car. The fungus Tricoderma reesei is deffinitly a new one in which i haven’t heard of before. To answer your question: Yes! i do think it is important to find alternative fuel sources for a better future, because one we are beginning to deplete the Earth of oil. Two, gas prices are way too high. Many people cannot afford these prices. To answer your second question. Yes! i do think that this fungus would be an effictive and efficent alternative to gasoline, because it is not beginning to be depleted and two its a fungus, that when mixed with yeast can be fermentated to ethanol. I’m willing to bet that we could make more ethanol from this process than the amount of gasoline on the Earth. As i was reading the comments before mine, i felt Andy’s was a very well written and informative comment because he showed me that there are many different kinds of fungus that can be used to make things we use daily. Also Sydni, great timing of post, when the gas prices are reaching towards 4.00 dollars a gallon! Here is a website that has many examples of what we are trying to use to make ethanol, advantages, and it shows what kind of ethanol your car could use. http://www.drivingethanol.org/
May 13th, 2008 at 9:00 pm
Wow!! I would have to agree with everyone when they say that it is important that Fungus could be turned into an alternative fuel. I believe this also because it will deefinently help us enviromentally and wwith our economy. Enviromentally alternative fuels do not let out so much pollution in to our air and carbon which can help us with global warming. Economically alternative fuel can help lower our gas prices and taxes by the US not having to buy foriegn oil from the middle east. I mean also if yeast could do all that then I am obviously a believer in fungus being an alternative fuel!! Also, I have a little fun fact. I know this may not be related to fungus but it has to do with alternative facts but I thought it was so cool that electricity, yes electricity, can be alternative fuel!!! That would be a good blog post…. To learn more about alternative fuels I highly recommend this websitehttp://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/fuels/
May 14th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
As most everyone said, finding new fuel is definitley important to the world and the enviornment! Our dependence on foreign fuel is becoming a problem and the rising gas prices are making it more and more difficult to purchase gas. The sooner we can find an alternative fuel, the better. Not only do we need it for our own independency and economy, we need it to preserve our enviornment! This website (http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=52398) talks more about what Sydni said in her post.
I visited Max’s website suggestion and I saw the electricity was another alternative way of transportation that’s better than gasoline. But I thought that electricity was also bad for the enviornment because it puts carbon dioxide into the air. Is that true?