Proteomics of Filamentous Fungi
EMSL Project ID
6515a
Abstract
Our research is aligned with the DOE core mission to develop new sources of energy for the future. The biorefinery concept, which aims to make fuel from biomass economically feasible by the additional production of value added compounds from by-products, supports this directive. Specifically more economical methods of converting renewable plant-derived biomass first to sugars, then to fuels and chemicals are required. Currently, filamentous fungi are used by industry to produce enzymes, organic acids and pharmaceuticals. In these industrial settings, it has been noted that the morphology of the fungus is correlated to the productivity of the organism. For example, when one of our model organisms (Aspergillus niger) is grown in a pelleted morphology it produces over 30 grams of citric acid per liter; citric acid production falls to well under a gram per liter when A. niger grows in its filamentous form. Since the industrial fungal processes (hyperproductivity) were arrived at by mutation, selection, or manipulation of fermentation parameters, there is little understanding of how morphology contributes to production. Our overall goal is to identify the molecular basis of morphology control and be able to manipulate any filamentous fungus of interest into a hyperproductive state. In the course of this work we expect to answer basic research questions regarding the control of morphology and associated product output in filamentous fungi by utilizing the proteomics technology developed at PNNL.
Project Details
Start Date
2006-05-17
End Date
2007-10-01
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator
Team Members