This gene regulates plant lipid metabolism, and its overexpression can increase oil content in plant biomass for its utilization in biofuel production. Biofuels are liquid fuels produced through the utilization of renewable sources, such as plants, algae, and oil and animal fat waste. In 2023, the U.S. biofuels market size was estimated at $31.93 billion with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.8% by 2030 . However, despite the potential of the biofuel industry, biofuel production faces several limitations, such as a limited feedstock supply and energy-intensive and cost-ineffective production. Genetic engineering for the hyperaccumulation of lipids in vegetative plant tissues of high biomass crops is a promising strategy to significantly increase the lipid yield for the production of advanced biofuels. Triacylglycerol (TAG) represents the main lipid deposits in plants, and its catabolism prevents its hyper-accumulation in vegetative tissues. Current strategies for plant-lipid derived biofuel production include the upregulation of genes involved in lipid biosynthesis, TAG assembly, and the suppression of lipid degradation. However, there is a lack of effective plant-specific metabolic engineering tools.
Researchers at the University of Florida have developed a genetic engineering approach to increase lipid accumulation by overexpressing AHL4, a gene involved in the suppression of lipid catabolism. By boosting hyperaccumulation of biomass oil content and plant biomass, it can significantly increase the production of biofuels.
Overexpression of AHL4 to increase plant biomass oil content and boost the production of advanced biofuels
Technology
Genetic engineering for hyperaccumulation of lipids in plant tissues is an attractive strategy to increase the lipid yield per land area and boost the production of advanced biofuels. Researchers at the University of Florida have employed genetic engineering to overexpress the AHL4 gene, increasing lipid content in vegetative plant biomass. AHL4 is a transcriptional repressor, and it co-suppresses genes involved in lipid catabolism. Overexpression of AHL4 leads to impaired hydrolyzation of triacylglycerol, the main form of stored lipids in plant seeds, rapidly increasing lipid accumulation in plants and resulting in increased plant biomass. Translating this strategy to high biomass crops such as sugarcane can significantly boost lipid yields per land area for biofuel production.
