The yeast cellulosome could enable efficient one-step "consolidated bioprocessing" by maximizing the catalytic efficiency of cellulosic hydrolysis with simultaneous fermentation. The process of using these engineered yeasts can potentially make the production of bioethanol from biomass more efficient and economical.

The federal Energy Policy Act mandates the increased production of renewable fuel, such as bioethanol created from biomass. Currently, the most common method of producing bioethanol uses sugar cane and corn starch. Efficient, cost-effective methods of using non-food related materials like cellulosic biomass found in agricultural and wood-pulping wastes is the focus of new research by Chen's team, among others.

The use of multiple enzymes in the cellulosome greatly increases the efficiency of hydrolysis because heterogeneous forms of cellulose can be digested. The artificial cellulosome developed at UCR is highly modular and can be engineered to display ten or more different cellulases, the composition of which can be tuned to optimized hydrolysis of any feedstock

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