E. coli para produzir biodiesel

(Notícia em Inglês)
E. coli bacteria have what it takes to produce high volumes of biofuel cheaply and efficiently. All that’s needed, scientists say, is a tweak to kick E. coli into high gear.

Biodiesel can be made from plant oil or animal fat. Used cooking oil from restaurants is common, but for biodiesel to contribute significantly to reducing fossil fuel use, there needs to be a way to mass produce it from plant-derived raw materials. The problem is that synthesizing biodiesel is complicated. That’s where E. coli comes in.

The bacteria, often discussed in terms of the human digestive tract, also act as a catalyst in generating biodiesel by converting inexpensive sugars into fatty acid derivatives that are chemically similar to gasoline.

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