The Potential of microalgae for cellulose degradation and utilization for biofuel application

Abstract

As society is becoming more reliant on fuels, a more sustainable form of energy must be investigated. Another presiding issue is the output of cellulose left over from other plants that are used for biofuels, such as corn. However, the microalgae, Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, a unicellular organism, is an ideal source of energy, as there is evidence that it contains the genes that are responsible for the encoding of Cellulases, which allow for the degradation of cellulose, such as endoglucanases. Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii typically lives in both soil and water environments, a photosynthetic organism that utilizes light as an energy source. The uncommon trait for microalgae to express cellulase allows for external sources of carbon to be utilized by the microorganism, which could affect the biological output of macromolecules common in biofuels such as lipids and carbohydrates. The study aims to compare not only the cellulase expression levels of Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, but also see how the lipid output of the microalgae compares to other microorganisms used in the biofuel industry such as Chlorella Vulgaris, another phototrophic microalgae, which is used for direct fuel. Additionally, Trichoderma Reesei will also be compared, which is another microorganism that is used for biofuel production. However, the industry utilizes Trichoderma Reesei’s ability to produce cellulase, rather than just taking directly from the microorganism. The conclusions unfortunately did not show any cellulase expression, and biofuel output favored algae