Termite guts may hold key to better biofuels - Reuters

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Termite guts may hold key to better biofuels
21 Nov 2007 18:00:02 GMT
Source: Reuters

By Ben Hirschler

LONDON, Nov 21 (Reuters) - The back-end of a
termite is an odd place to look to solve the world's
energy crisis but scientists believe the insects'
guts may hold the key to better and cheaper
biofuels.

Researchers said on Wednesday they had identified
a rich reservoir of wood-digesting enzymes exuded
by bacteria living in the bellies of termites.

The efficient processes the insects use to turn
wood into food could one day be harnessed in
factories to transform wood into fuel for transport
as an alternative to crops like corn.

The discovery follows a genome-wide analysis of
bacteria from the hindgut of the Nasutitermes
termite species in Costa Rica, published in the
science journal Nature.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L21877378.htm

[shain from kane]

1. Termite walks into a bar, and asks, "Where's the bar tender?"