engineering duckweed

Some interesting work that could lead a new biofuel source that doesn't require conventional cropland.

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The paper describes how the scientists engineered a strain of duckweed, Lemna japonica, to accumulate oil at close to 10% of its dry weight biomass. That's a dramatic, 100-fold increase over such plants growing in the wild—with yields more than seven times higher than soybeans, today's largest source of biodiesel.

"Duckweed grows fast," said Brookhaven Lab biochemist John Shanklin, who led the team. "It has only tiny stems and roots—so most of its biomass is in leaf-like fronds that grow on the surface of ponds worldwide. Our engineering creates high oil content in all that biomass.

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a tip of the hat to Greg